The Plot Thickens
by FredFanatic
Summary: Entering her sixth year at Hogwarts, Juliet faces a decision which leads to heartache, betrayal, and a crumbling friendship. In a wizarding world that is changing rapidly, the students of Hogwarts will have their loyalties tested. PART 2 of 3
1. Peace, Tranquility, and Boredom

**A/N:** Hi, and welcome to the sequel to _It Happens in Threes_. If you've just stumbled upon this story for the first time, you may want to backtrack and read the first part of this story. Everything will make much more sense after reading the beginning rather than jumping in during the second part.

I have recently revamped the first part of this series, so if you find minor consistency errors between this story and the first, you'll know why. Rest assured, I will be working to edit out any such discrepancies!

Now, I'm sure you'd like to get on with it, so happy reading everyone! Be sure to review!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**- CHAPTER ONE -**

_Peace, Tranquility, and…Boredom_

_Peace._

_Quiet._

_Relaxation._

It was safe to say that after returning home from school for the summer holidays I was thoroughly enjoying the amount of peace and quiet I had access to. There was no drama floating around in the air like at Hogwarts, and no schoolwork to worry about (although I did have a fair bit of summer homework to complete). I had as much time as I wanted to simply relax and enjoy the long, warm days.

Upon my return, my parents had spent several hours asking questions about the recently past school year, and it was nearly two full days before I had run out of new things to tell them. They seemed positively thrilled to hear about anything and everything I had to offer, and it became clear that I was going to grow weary of conversing sooner than they were. Although I shared much of my school experience with them, there were certain things I made a point to keep to myself. The instance with Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, for instance, was something I was going to keep quiet. As far as the rest of the wizarding world knew, Black was a mass-murderer and Pettigrew was dead. I was one of the few who knew the truth.

Fortunately, my parents had no idea I had had anything to do with Sirius Black's reappearance and escape from Hogwarts at the end of term. Thus, they had believed my initial tale in which I had described how Professor Dumbledore had merely explained to the students that Black had managed another miraculous escape. However, my mother and father were far more interested when it came to other topics of my fifth year at Hogwarts. Amongst being bludgeoned with questions about Quidditch, Sirius Black and the professors at school, I was also quizzed on my love life. Both my mother and father seemed to be waiting for me to slip up and feed them some information.

Of course, I was sure they were referring to Fred Weasley.

Ah yes, Fred. I had been extremely careful not to bring up too much to do with either Fred or George, as I was sure my parents would punish me for any trouble they realized I had gotten in to during the year. However, they seemed to suspect that I was dodging the topic of the twins, and they constantly brought them up over mealtimes in what I assumed was an attempt to dig out the dark secrets of my social career. However, there was no chance on earth that I was going to admit to them that a romantic relationship had somewhat developed between Fred and I. I didn't need them breathing down my neck about that sort of thing.

The fact that Fred Weasley was no longer around was actually quite nice, despite the feelings that had arisen between the two of us. Without him around I had a rare chance to relax. I spent the first week of my summer holidays at home, enjoying the sunny days by flying a bit in my yard. I didn't bother myself with letters to my friends, as I knew I would be seeing them again in good time. Until then, I kept myself occupied with other things.

I was still taking the God awful potion Professor McGonagall had sent me home with, and although I was extremely excited about the entire thing, I was almost wishing I hadn't agreed to it at all. The taste of the thick substance was enough to make me want to vomit. It is the most disgusting thing I have ever in my life had the displeasure of tasting.

My parents had originally wanted to inform the rest of my family members about the Animagus procedure I was undergoing, but I wouldn't hear of it. The reason I was so excited about being able to transform myself into an animal was so no one would know it was me. Where's the excitement in becoming a cat if everyone knows it's you? Therefore, I did not allow my mother to owl my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins when they asked for my permission to do so.

Thirteen days had passed before I received my first letter from Fred and George.

I was lying on my bed with school books, quills and ink bottles spread out in front of me. I figured it would be a good idea to get a head start on my homework while I had the chance. Merlin knows when it came time to see my friends homework would be last on my list of priorities.

Just as I was wrapping up a rather lengthy essay for Charms, an old, scruffy looking owl flew through my bedroom window clumsily and landed with a thud on my dresser.

I looked up, surprised that my quiet had been interrupted, and hurried over to retrieve the letter it was carrying. I recognized the owl to be Errol, belonging to the Weasley family.

"From Fred and George I suppose," I said to the owl, though it did not seem interested in making small talk. Instead it just nipped me in the arm as if to tell me to hurry up so he could get going.

I pulled the letter from its leg and the bird eyed and pecked at a water bottle I had sitting next to my bed. I unscrewed the top and carefully poured some of the liquid into the bird's open beak. When it had had it's full, he sat patiently, waiting for a reply to bring home to the twins.

Sitting on the edge of my bed, I unrolled the parchment and recognized Fred's messy handwriting.

_Our Dearest Jules,_

_How is your summer going? I bet you're missing our dashing faces already aren't you? I know we're missing yours. _

_It was just as we were practicing Quidditch with Ron in the backyard that we realized, this isn't the same without Juliet to pelt bludgers at. Shame you're not with us._

_But, all is well, as this letter will hopefully change all that nonsense about George and me missing you. I'm sure once we receive your return letter we'll remember we're not really missing out on all that much. Even if you are our best mate, you're really not all you're cracked up to be. _

_Now, to get to the point of writing you…Father has informed us that he has managed to get tickets for the Quidditch World Cup, and, as promised, you are indeed invited to tag along._

_With that said, you are also invited to come to the Burrow and spend the remainder of summer with us whenever it is that you're able to come. _

_Take a moment and scream for joy if you wish, we understand this is possibly the most brilliant offer you could have received on your journey towards enjoying your summer._

_But seriously, Mum's already gotten a start on cleaning the house. We've had to degnome the garden twice already, so you better not disappoint us Juliet my dear. We are eagerly awaiting your arrival._

_If you can't give us an answer now, be sure to owl us later. That way we'll know when to have our dung bombs prepared._

_Here's hoping everything is well. We hope to hear from you soon,_

_Fred & George_

_P.S. It might be a good idea to water Errol if he's going to make it the whole journey home._

I read over the letter twice just to laugh at the twins' jokes a second time before I grabbed a spare piece of parchment and began scribbling my reply.

_Dearest George (and Fred too I suppose),_

_Thus far, summer has been dull, but far more relaxing than it would be with the two of you around. Although, as you said, I do miss your dashing faces (well, George's anyway). _

_It's brilliant that your dad managed to get tickets for the World Cup, and I'm more than excited to go with you. _

_As for coming to the Burrow, I'll have to confirm with my parents when I'll be allowed to go. I'll get back to you on that one, but I'm sure I'll see you in good time. _

_All my love,_

_Julie_

I rolled up the piece of parchment and tied it back on to the waiting owl's leg. As soon as I had, he took off through the window once more and flew off into the distance, staggering ever so slightly in the soft wind.

After hearing from the twins I lost all motivation to finish my homework. In fact, I found it extremely difficult to enjoy the peace and quiet I was so looking forward to in the beginning. I found myself missing the twins more and more with each passing day.

Thankfully, my mother delivered good news to me which would surely cure me of my ever-growing boredom.

She told me I would be spending a week with Alicia and her family prior to leaving for the Burrow, as both of my parents were leaving on a romantic vacation together. They came to the conclusion that I should not be left all alone at home, and decided rather than sending me to the Burrow for an extensive period of time, Alicia's house would be a suitable place for me to stay. I was to leave for the Burrow immediately after being at Alicia's house.

Thus, as my parents were packing for their two-week long romantic tropical getaway, I was packing up my trunk for Alicia's, the Burrow, and Hogwarts all at once. I was not likely to be returning home for the remainder of the summer.

"Now Juliet, I don't want you forgetting your manners with Mr. and Mrs. Spinnet," my mother reminded me for the thousandth time. "Remember, their rules are much different than ours."

"You mean they're much more strict," I interrupted.

"We're lucky enough to have them agree to take you in for the week," my father said firmly.

"I know, I know, I'll be good," I said.

"We're just reminding you," my mother clarified. "You can be a bit forgetful at times."

"Ok, right, so that's…change my socks every day, remember to shower, and…oh I know this…oh ya _behave_," I said sarcastically, counting the points off on my fingers.

My mother and father gave me identical unimpressed looks.

"You know, it's true about couples who have been together a long time beginning to look alike," I said.

The expressions on their faces did not change.

"Wow, you'd think I was some sort of wild animal the way you two treat me," I said sarcastically. "What do you think I'm going to do? Destroy the place?"

"We can't exactly be sure now can we? What with the way you behave around Fred and George," my mother pointed out. She had heard many terror stories from Mrs. Weasley, and I'm sure many more from other members of the wizarding public.

"Oh Mum, they really aren't as bad as their mother makes them out to be you know," I said, although it wasn't really the truth. Mrs. Weasley didn't need to exaggerate Fred and George's behaviour. They were already as out of control as they could possibly be.

"I wasn't referring to Fred and George," she said, "I was referring to you."

"Oh ha ha," I remarked.

"Well, let's just be thankful there isn't three of them," my mother continued, "We can't have you getting into even more trouble now can we?"

"From what you just said, it sounds like there _are_ three of them. Me being the third."

My mum cocked her eyebrow at me.

"Just, try to be good, alright hunny?" my dad pleaded.

"I'll do my best," I replied, giving them an angelic smile.

"We'll come with you to Alicia's to say goodbye," my mother told me as I lugged my trunk into the living room.

"Let me take that," Dad said, grabbing hold of the handle.

I moved over to the fireplace, as we would be travelling to the Spinnet residence by floo powder. I grabbed a handful of the black powder and stepped into our fireplace. Giving my parents a salute, I dropped the powder on to the floor beneath me and spoke Alicia's address clearly.

The feeling of travelling by floo powder is one that I have never really gotten used to. The spinning motion in such a tight space always manages to make me feel sick. Fortunately, it was only a few seconds before I found myself standing in Alicia's living room.

I hurried out of the fireplace to make room for my parents and brushed my clothes off as best I could.

"Ahh, Juliet, you've arrived I see," Alicia's father said in a friendly tone, getting up from the seat he had been occupying.

"Indeed I have sir," I replied in an overly official voice as he came forward to shake my hand.

Alicia's father is not a man to mess with. He has always demanded the utmost respect in his household. Ever since I was eleven and I first came to visit Alicia he has made it clear that I was to abide by certain rules in his home. I knew to always be on my best behaviour while at the Spinnet residence. However, my time with Fred and George has taught me that rules are a lot more fun when they are broken.

Fortunately, before I could make a further arse of myself by subtly mocking Alicia's father, I was interrupted by Alicia herself.

"Julie! I was wondering when you were getting here," she said as she hurried in to the living room carrying beverages.

"Are your parents coming along?" Mr. Spinnet asked, glancing at the fireplace expectantly.

"Yes, they should be here any minute," I replied, taking the glass of lemonade Alicia was offering me.

Just as I had spoken, my father, followed closely by my mum came swiftly out of the fireplace. Dad sat my trunk down on the floor as he went forward to shake Mr. Spinnet's hand.

"Ah, Margaret, Kirk, great seeing you again," Mr. Spinnet greeted them.

"You too Peter, the Missus around?" my father asked.

As our parents began the usual routine of small talk and catching up, Alicia and I sprinted up the stairs, dragging my trunk behind us as we went.

"So how's your summer been so far?" Alicia asked as I dumped my trunk in a corner of her bedroom.

"Uneventful," I replied dully.

"Same here," Alicia answered. "Heard from Fred and George yet?"

"They owled me last week," I replied, "I'm going straight to the Burrow from your house when it comes time to leave."

"I pity you," she said.

"Whatever, you'd give anything to be in my shoes."

"I would not."

"I get to _live_ with George Weasley," I said.

"You're right, _so_ jealous."

"You're pathetic Leesh," I commented, flopping myself down on her bed against the wall.

"I'll freely admit to that," she said, "as long as you admit you're pathetic as well."

"Of course I am," I admitted, picking up a Muggle magazine that had been lying on the floor. "So what do you have planned for the two of us this week Alicia my dear?"

"Well I haven't given it too much thought," Alicia replied. "We've got to make a trip to Diagon Alley before you leave."

"Why's that?" I asked, absentmindedly flipping through the magazine.

"Well my parents won't tell me much about it, but they say we'll be needing a set of dress robes," she told me. "I don't know about you, but my old ones have gotten quite tattered."

"What on earth would we need dress robes for?" I questioned, pausing my page flipping momentarily to gaze at someone called Ashton Kutcher.

"I don't know," Alicia replied, "they won't say."

"Hmm…I wonder if Fred and George would know," I wondered, now studying an article titled 'Your Best Climax Yet'. "Alicia, what kind of rubbish are you reading?"

"My sister's into fashion!" Alicia replied defensively. "That's what she's studying in college this year."

Alicia's sister, like Mr. Weasley, is very interested in Muggle Studies and had decided to pursue a career in fashion design rather than getting a job in the Wizarding world…something that her father does not approve of.

"Since when are 'Our Most Outrageous Positions Yet' fashion-based material?" I asked, crinkling my nose in disgust and tossing the magazine back on to the floor.

"As I was saying," Alicia continued, ignoring me and kicking the magazine under her bed, "You and I can go shopping for robes together. It'll save you going with the Weasleys."

"Good plan."

"Aside from that, I'm not sure what we'll do to pass the time."

"I'm sure we'll come up with something," I replied.

"Ohh…" Alicia said suddenly, sounding as though she had just remembered something unpleasant.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I'd almost forgotten," she said, "Tomorrow night we have a party to go to."

"A party?" I questioned, "What kind of party?"

"Nothing exciting," she answered, "just some work thing Dad needs to go to, and he's dragging the lot of us with him."

"Your father works for the Ministry, right?"

"Yeah…" Alicia answered in a bored tone.

"There's bound to be someone interesting there though, right?"

"Don't count on it Jules," she replied.

I frowned. A boring party filled with adults sipping drinks and making small talk definitely didn't sound like fun.

"Have you ever been to one of these things before?" I asked.

"Thankfully, I have not."

"So you have no idea what to expect?"

"From what I've heard it's a fairly professional affair," she told me. "Certainly no one we would have fun talking to would be there."

I nodded in agreement.

_It looks like my boring summer is just about to get even duller._

Oh how wrong I was…


	2. Cedric Diggory

**A/N:** Hi again everyone, and thank you for the reviews. I always love reading them, but they've made me feel rather guilty this past little while. Everyone's been reviewing and I've been late getting this next chapter up. I've been wanting to get this up for a while now, but I've been having difficulty finding time get the story out of my head and down on paper. Even so, I'm hoping after this chapter I'll have chapter three up shortly.

This chapter is a little different, as I have decided to have Juliet interact with Cedric Diggory. As you all know Cedric dies at the end of Goblet of Fire, and I thought that this would be a perfect time to honour his character and have Juliet get to know him a little better. So, in memory of Cedric Diggory, here's chapter two…

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER TWO---**

_Cedric Diggory_

In preparation for Mr. Spinnet's dinner party tonight, Alicia and I were running around frantically in an attempt to pick out our least shabby set of robes.

"Are you sure we're not supposed to dress fancy or anything for this thing?" I asked her as Alicia rapidly opened and closed drawers, making an enormous racket.

"Of course not," she replied, "It's my parents who have to look decent. As long as we don't look like complete rubbish we'll be fine."

"So that load of make up on your desk is there for no reason?"

Alicia shrugged. "Suppose you're right and there _is_ someone of interest at this party," she said, "We'd regret not getting made up just a little bit if we come face to face with someone like Oliver Wood."

"Don't be ridiculous. Wood won't be there," I told her, "And neither will George Weasley."

"I didn't say anything about George!" Alicia said defensively.

"You were thinking it," I replied, "And you shouldn't be, because Mr. Weasley isn't dumb enough to bring the twins along to a work event. They'd trash the place."

"I know the twins won't be there," she said, although she looked a bit crestfallen.

"Then who will?"

"Cedric Diggory might," Alicia replied dreamily.

"George would have a fit if he heard you talking like that," I told her, rolling my eyes.

"George isn't around. Plus, he's not my boyfriend. I can say whatever I like."

"Very true, but Diggory's more of a girl than you or me," I pointed out.

"No he's not," Alicia said defensively.

"I know he makes ninety percent of the girls in Hogwarts go weak in the knees, but I would have thought _you'd_ have more sense than that, Alicia," I said.

"You're the one with no sense," she told me, "He's gorgeous!"

"Just promise me you won't ditch me for him tonight," I pleaded, pulling my robes on.

Alicia rolled her eyes in response. "Let's make a pact," she said, pulling on her own robes.

"What kind of a pact?" I questioned.

"Let's promise each other we'll try to have fun tonight. No worries."

"I don't know Leesh…I'm not sure I can commit to something so horrid," I replied sarcastically.

"I'm serious Juliet," she said sternly, "Let's forget about Fred and George tonight. If there are any remotely cute guys there, flirt with them."

"So what you're saying is you _are_ going to ditch me for Diggory."

"That's not what I said," she replied, "I just think it would be good for the both of us if we go out and forget about those two and have some fun."

"Wonderful. I'm sure your parents will love to see us whoring it up at the Ministry of Magic party."

"_Tasteful_ flirting," she clarified, "Innocent flirting. Nothing has to happen, it's just about the fun."

"I guess I can handle that," I replied reluctantly.

"It's a deal then," Alicia said excitedly, shaking my hand.

"Brilliant. Percy Weasley should be there; he got a job at the Ministry!" I said, faking a look of lust.

"That's disgusting!" Alicia groaned.

"No more disgusting than Cedric Diggory," I replied.

"You did not just say that!"

"Oh but I did."

"We'll just see about that. If he's there tonight you're talking to him."

"Fat chance," I replied stubbornly.

She rolled her eyes at me again and shook her head.

"Come on, let's do your hair," Alicia said, pushing me into a chair.

Alicia's sister's fashion magazines did, indeed, come in handy. We managed to teach ourselves tricks for doing our hair. We're not yet of age, and therefore cannot perform magic outside of school.

It wasn't long after Alicia and I had completed putting the finishing touches on our hair and makeup that her mother was calling up the stairs for us to come down.

"All right, time to go," Alicia said, straightening up.

The two of us hurried down the stairs and in to the living room. Her parents were waiting there, dressed very formally indeed.

"Come on you two, we can't be late," Mr. Spinnet said, ushering us forward.

"Juliet you can come with me, Alicia you can Apparate alongside your father," Mrs. Spinnet said, holding out her hand to me.

Alicia took hold of her father's arm and I grabbed on to her mother's.

"All right Juliet, have you ever done this before?" Mrs. Spinnet asked.

"Once or twice," I said, having Apparated alongside my mother and father a couple of times before.

"Well then you know how it's done, just hold still dear," she told me.

I did as I was told and stayed perfectly still as the earth seemed to push down on every inch of my body. Fortunately, just as quickly as the horror of Apparating had begun, it ended.

"And here we are," Mr. Spinnet said. He and Alicia had appeared to my left, looking much less dishevelled than I felt.

Alicia came to my side and I made a move to walk away. I was quickly stopped by Alicia. She grabbed my arm and gestured towards her father. Clearly we had to wait for instructions before we left.

_Gee Alicia sure is on a tight leash with her father._

"The two of you go get something to eat, and behave yourselves," Mr. Spinnet told us sternly. I couldn't help but notice he treated us like little girls. I had to fight the urge to mock his strict behaviour. It certainly wouldn't go over well with Alicia's father if I back-talked to him in front of his colleagues.

"We will," Alicia assured him and I forced a smile and nodded.

"Go on then," he told us, and we hurried away from the entrance where other witches and wizards were beginning to appear.

Once we had made our way in to the room a fair bit, I took my time glancing around.

"Wow, for a Ministry party this place is looking pretty bland don't you think?" I said in a hushed voice to Alicia, careful not to be overheard by anyone who might be offended.

The huge room had very little decoration other than hundreds of floating candles, much like those at Hogwarts. There were already quite a number of people occupying the space. Some were choosing their meals at a long table filled with plates of a variety of yummy-looking eateries that kept magically refilling themselves. Others, who clearly had already begun drinking, were making fools of themselves on the dance floor. But the majority of the people were mingling with each other.

Out of the crowd of minglers I immediately recognized Cornelius Fudge, who looked greatly displeased at something or another. Mr. Weasley was lingering over a plate of brownies and Percy was following Barty Crouch around like a lost puppy.

As Alicia and I didn't want to look stupid standing around, we opted to go talk to Mr. Weasley.

_Maybe if we play our cards right he'd take us to the Burrow to see the twins._

As if reading my mind, Alicia looked at me sternly.

"Don't you dare ask him to bring us to the Burrow Juliet."

"What? You actually think I would do that?" I asked, pretending to be shocked.

"Mhm," she muttered.

"Dessert already?" I asked as Alicia and I approached Mr. Weasley, who was still hovering over the brownies.

He gave a start at the sound of my voice and turned around.

"Juliet! Hi!" he said in a friendly tone, "And Alicia Spinnet! Your father is here I presume?"

"And Mum," Alicia told him.

"Well I will have to make a point of talking to them later on. How are you two girls?" he asked politely.

"Good," Alicia replied. Strangely, she seemed a little edgy. Maybe she was so infatuated with George that even talking with his father was nerve-racking.

"I'd rather not be here," I told Mr. Weasley truthfully.

"Oh nonsense. I'm sure you'll find something to do," he assured me. "Keep out of trouble, mind."

He gave me a meaningful look at this statement and Alicia smirked.

"Now, I best be off, I've got to make my rounds you know," he said.

Alicia and I nodded in understanding and glanced around to see if there was anyone else we could converse with.

"Oh Juliet, I almost forgot," Mr. Weasley said, turning back around, "You will be joining us at the Quidditch Cup won't you?"

"I will be, and thank you very much for the invite," I told him graciously.

"Not at all. Enjoy the party ladies."

With that, Mr. Weasley disappeared in to the gradually thickening crowd of people.

"You never told me," I said to Alicia as I eyed the food in front of us, "are you going to the Quidditch Cup this year?"

"Unfortunately no," she replied sadly. "Dad's got a family trip planned."

"Oh, well that could still be fun," I said.

"He did it on purpose," she told me. "He's never liked Quidditch. This way he doesn't have to take me."

"How could anyone not like Quidditch?" I asked, shocked.

"No idea," she replied, picking up a tart and shoving it violently in to her mouth.

"Leesh!" I yelled, laughing at the sight of her. "You're going to embarrass me!"

"Embarrass you? In front of all of these snooty twits you mean?" she asked, bits of tart flying out of her mouth, "Who cares?"

"Swallow before you speak," I told her, handing her a napkin. "I can see why you're so infatuated with George. You're beginning to look like him."

She glared at me.

"It's too bad Fred and George aren't here," I commented.

"Juliet what did I tell you?" Alicia questioned angrily. "No thinking about Fred tonight!"

"Come on Leesh! Look around! Do you see anyone even remotely interesting in this room?" I protested, glancing around at several old and dull looking wizards standing nearby.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Alicia replied excitedly.

"Hmm…I suppose the one with the purple beard _does_ look like he'd be good for a laugh," I said thoughtfully as a man with a beard that would rival the length of Dumbledore's came into view. It was decorated with purple dye and bright yellow stars glittering amongst his whiskers.

"No! That's not who I meant!" Alicia said.

"Oh, who did you mean then?" I asked, turning back to face her.

Alicia nodded to the left. Following her gaze my eyes came across Cedric Diggory.

"Diggory, Leesh?" I asked her disbelievingly. "Honestly? I thought we went over this"

"You haven't given me a single reason to believe that there's something wrong with him."

I shrugged.

"I guess he's alright. If you like that dim-witted, pretty-boy thing he's got going on," I replied, pouring myself a drink.

"Oh come on Julie, he's cute. Go talk to him!"

"If you like him so much why don't _you_ go talk to him?"

"Because you need to et out of that Fred head of yours!" she said, giving me a push in Cedric's direction.

I groaned, but I knew arguing would get me nowhere.

I turned to give Alicia a rude hand gesture and accidentally backed right into Cedric himself.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" I said, my face beginning to flush a deep crimson.

"That's alright, I wasn't looking where I was going either," he replied politely.

"Well I guess we're both to blame then. Excuse me," I replied, trying to get away.

"Hold on, I know you," he said, a look of recognition spreading on to his handsome features.

"Do you?"

"Gryffindor Chaser-Juliet Christie," he recited.

"That'd be me," I said, taking a sip of my drink.

"Yes, you're quite good—you fly really well."

"Thank you, you're not so bad yourself," I replied, "But you're no match for Harry Potter."

"Easy, no need to get competitive," he joked.

"Can't help it," I told him with a shrug.

"So…what are you doing here?"

"What, I don't look like I belong?" I asked.

"No! I just meant—my father works for the Ministry, so that's how I got suckered into coming," he clarified.

"I'm here with Alicia," I told him, looking around for her, as she had moved from her original spot at the table. She was failing terribly at appearing subtle as she stared at Cedric and me from the other side of the room.

Cedric snickered, having taken notice of her as well.

"Those twin friends of yours aren't here," he stated.

"Surprised?"

"A little."

"I don't think these people could handle the Weasley twins," I said, "Although they would definitely liven up this party."

"Am I too boring for you?" Cedric asked, quirking his eyebrow at me.

I shrugged, "I've had worse conversations."

"Well," he said, taking my glass from me and placing it down on the table behind me, "Since I'm not the worst conversation you've ever had, would you care to dance?"

Cedric gestured to the dance floor where there were a few dancing couples amongst the drunk buffoons.

I considered him for a moment, and then recalled Alicia's words encouraging me to forget about Fred and have some fun.

"Alright," I said, trying to sound extremely reluctant.

Cedric laughed and took my hand, leading me towards the dance floor.

"So, have you ever been to one of these things before?" I asked as we fell in to step.

"Unfortunately."

"Does it ever liven up?"

"It'll be another hour or so before they start getting seriously drunk," Cedric spilled, "Ludo Bagman is always quite a show himself. Of course, he's not here yet. He's always turning up late."

"Well I'll have to watch for him," I replied, "Sounds like he'll be the life of the party."

"I wouldn't say that."

"You wouldn't?" I questioned.

"Well I'm certainly enjoying your company," he answered.

I threw him a suspicious look.

"If I didn't know any better I'd say you were flirting with me, Diggory."

"That's quite a cocky thing to say, Christie."

"Don't you act like you're not interested," I said, "I can read you like a book."

"Such a cliché line, Juliet? And here I am thinking you're clever."

I glared at him in mock outrage and smacked him lightly on the arm.

"Well, you are cute when you're angry."

My mouth widened and I smacked him again.

"And it's good to know you couldn't kick my arse," he said laughing.

"Don't make me punch you out. I wouldn't want to damage that pretty face of yours," I threatened.

"Cute, but hostile," he said to himself.

"Pretty, but arrogant," I mimicked.

"I didn't say anything about pretty," he said.

"I was talking about you."

Cedric smirked at me.

"I pity Fred Weasley," he said laughing.

I faltered, stepping on Cedric's foot. He chuckled at my discomfort.

"Oh-no-Fred and I aren't together," I stuttered.

"I know," he replied, "That's why I pity him. The guy doesn't stand a chance with your quick tongue."

I felt a sinking sensation in my stomach at the thought of Fred, and Cedric seemed to notice. He quickly changed the subject.

I was careful not to bring up Fred again as the night travelled onward. Cedric and I continued to talk, even after we were thrown off the dance floor by the arrival of Ludo Bagman. As Cedric promised, he did put on quite a show, causing a riot in the middle of the dance area. It was then that we decided a nice walk outside would be pleasant. I made quick eye-contact with Alicia (who was chatting up a handsome young blond boy) and took Cedric's arm, allowing him to lead me outside into the cool summer night air.

"I must say Juliet, you are a terrible dancer," Cedric joked as we wandered around through a garden.

"Not as bad as you are," I told him.

From outside, the building now hosting the Ministry party looked deserted and seemed much smaller than it actually was. No sound could be heard from within, although just moments ago I had been surrounded by laughing people and loud music. Clearly the building was under anti-Muggle spells.

"You know, it's amazing the Ministry has time to have a party when they've been so busy preparing for the Quidditch World Cup," I commented.

"Yes, I think tonight was Bagman's idea. They do it yearly, but they planned on cancelling it. That's why they put so little effort in to decorations this year," Cedric explained.

"Mmm, I see."

"Speaking of the World Cup—are you going?" he asked as we continued through the overgrown gardens and unkempt lawn.

I nodded, "And you?"

"Wouldn't miss it," he replied enthusiastically. "You're supporting Ireland I expect."

"Of course," I replied, "Bulgaria's rubbish anyway."

"Except for Krum."

"Oh of course, the famous Seeker," I said dramatically, "Think that'll be you one day?"

Cedric laughed. "I highly doubt it."

"Why's that?"

"My dad," he said simply.

"He's got other plans for you?"

"Well he's always bragging to anyone who will listen about my flying abilities, but he's expecting me to follow in his footsteps."

"And you don't want to?" I guessed.

"Work for the Ministry of Magic? Definitely not."

"What do you want to do then?" I questioned, glancing up at his moon-lit features.

"Promise you won't laugh?" he asked, looking back down at me.

"Depends on how funny it is," I joked.

He smiled. "I want to teach."

I laughed, and then stopped.

"Sorry," I said, "I just had no idea you aspired to be the next Severus Snape."

"It's my life-long ambition," he replied, a look of mock determination and heroism on his face.

I laughed again and tripped over something on the ground. Cedric caught me just before I fell.

I laughed to hide my discomfort at his proximity.

"You'll have to stop washing your hair then," I said, trying to regain my composure.

The two of us had a good laugh at Snape's expense as Cedric pulled me back up straight. I could feel my face burning up and I tried desperately to shake off the flustered feeling before Cedric noticed.

"But honestly, can you see it?"

"See what?" I asked, having completely forgotten what we were talking about.

"Me…teaching," he said.

"Oh…oh right!" I said, failing miserably at appearing composed.

Cedric could clearly tell I was embarrassed, but fortunately, he didn't point it out to me.

"Right…you, teaching…" I stammered, trying to think of something clever to say.

"Yes, me, teaching…" Cedric mocked, laughing at me.

"Maybe as a Herbology professor. You look like you're good with weeds," I said finally.

"That's the best you could come up with?" he asked, smirking, "I know girls usually get flustered around me, but I wouldn't expect it from you."

I glared at him. "You do _not_ get me flustered, Diggory."

He grinned at me. "You never answered my question."

I looked at him suspiciously before answering.

"I think it's a brilliant idea. And if that's what you want you should go for it."

"You know, I really should talk to you more often."

"Now, now, let's not get carried away Diggory. We're still enemies remember."

"Of course we are," he replied, "But does that mean we can't talk?"

"Oh we'll do lots of talking. I won't be able to stop myself from rubbing it in your face when we kick Hufflepuff's arse in Quidditch this year."

"We'll see about that."

I chuckled at his comment and he grinned at me.

"You're disappointing me, Diggory," I said.

"Why's that?" he asked, looking at me curiously.

"Up until tonight I've always thought you were a total airhead," I told him, "But you've proved me wrong. You're only fifty percent moronic."

"Merlin, with that cheek of yours you'd think you were a Weasley twin in disguise."

"They've corrupted me, I know."

Cedric laughed and glanced back to the deserted-looking building.

"I'd better get back or my dad will come bursting out here to embarrass me," he said.

"Fine by me, I can't wait to get away from you anyhow."

"Ha, ha. Let's go Juliet."

Cedric tugged on my arm and lead me back in to the building, and I couldn't help but feel a little sorry that we were headed back to the rest of the party guests. I hadn't intended to have such a good time talking to Cedric Diggory.

When we re-entered the large room we realized we were just in time. It seemed the party was coming to a violent close.

Ludo Bagman had caused an extraordinary uproar. It seemed he had accidentally set the building on fire in his drunken state. The fire was being put out, but everyone looked outraged with Bagman. It had been his idea to hold the party, and now he had ended up ruining it entirely.

"Well it looks like you're in luck," Cedric said, "You won't have to endure conversing with me any longer."

I laughed and stared up at him.

"Thank you for a lovely evening Mr. Diggory," I said, trying my best to sound professional amongst all the chaos going on around us.

"It was a pleasure Miss Christie," he replied, kissing the back of my hand.

"I'll see you at school Diggory," I said with a wink.

He grinned at me before running off to find his father.

This left me, amongst a crowd of angry wizards, to track down the Spinnets.

"There you are!"

I turned around to see Alicia running towards me.

"Hey Leesh, thank Merlin for Ludo Bagman eh?" I commented, "Now we'll get to leave early."

"What? You didn't have fun with Cedric?"

"Nah, he's kind of a bore," I lied. I didn't want to admit that she had been right about Cedric.

"You left outside together. Alone. You definitely had a good time," she replied knowingly.

I rolled my eyes at her, but didn't reply. There was no need to, the smile on my face and the tinge of pink in my cheeks gave me away.


	3. Back to the Burrow

**A/N:** Thank you all again for the reviews, and as someone pointed out, I did make an error in my last chapter. I wrote that Krum played for Germany, when he plays for Bulgaria. I do know that, it was a stupid mistake, but I've corrected it. I hope everyone continues to review, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. I think it's time for Juliet to be reunited with the twins.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER THREE---**

_Back to the Burrow_

I was definitely relieved when it came time to leave for the Burrow.

Alicia had spent nearly my entire visit asking questions about Cedric Diggory. She seemed to believe the two of us were positively adorable together, and she was definitely reading much too far into the time I had spent with him at the Ministry party.

She was so convinced that I was smitten with him that she had even made a chart comparing him with Fred and seemed to think it would be perfect if I got together with Cedric instead. I had told her I wasn't interested, but she refused to believe it, especially after the two of us ran into him at Diagon Alley. Apparently the fact that he had stopped to say hello meant that he was definitely interested in me. Cue eye-rolling here.

I mean, it's not as if I didn't enjoy talking with Cedric that night…because I did, but we're nothing more than friends. Not even friends. We're acquaintances…_light_ acquaintances…if that.

The point is there was no reason for Alicia to waste away our fun-filled, strictly _no boy _week by talking about a boy! Talk about ruining the fun.

Needless to say I was ecstatic when the day came for the Weasley's to come and rescue me from the girlish wrath of Alicia Spinnet.

I was up, showered, dressed and packed before Alicia had even risen from bed. And I was made-up and full of her mother's delicious breakfast by the time she got out of the shower.

"So, are you going to tell Fred about you and Cedric?" she asked once she had eaten breakfast as well. I had been busy cleaning up the mess I had left in her bedroom after the week of living with her—I really am a slob.

"Why would I do a stupid thing like that?" I questioned, throwing various chocolate frog and other sweet wrappers into the waste bin.

"I thought you said it didn't mean anything?"

"It didn't. It was innocent flirting. Nothing happened," I stressed.

"Then why can't Fred know?"

"_No one_ needs to know," I said sternly.

"For someone who says nothing happened, you sure do sound like you're trying to hide something," she commented smugly.

"Alicia stop!" I yelled angrily. "Nothing aside from a light conversation went on between Cedric and me. And I am not going to tell Fred because he, just like you, will take it for more than it was."

"I still say you should tell him."

"Well I'm not going to tell him," I said firmly, "And neither are you."

The tone of finality in my voice was enough to convince Alicia to drop the subject. Instead she turned her attention to the mirror on her side wall.

"When did you say the twins are supposed to be here?" she asked, running a paddle brush through her long, dark hair.

"They should be here within ten minutes," I replied, double checking Alicia's room to ensure I hadn't forgotten to pack anything.

"Come and help me with my trunk will you?" I asked her.

"Hold on a minute," she replied as she applied some lip gloss hurriedly.

"Alicia, they're travelling by Floo Powder," I said, "George's eyes will be so full of soot that he won't even be able to distinguish me from you, let alone notice how shiny your lips are."

"Oh would you shut it?" she said harshly.

A few touch-ups later and Alicia and I had trudged down the stairs with my heavy trunk in tow. I wheeled it in to the living room and sat down in one of the arm chairs situated around the fire. I could hear Mrs. Spinnet busying herself in the kitchen with lunch. Mr. Spinnet was at work.

"Do I look ok?" Alicia asked, standing in front of me. She seemed very nervous.

"I think this crush you have has gone a little far Leesh," I said.

"It's just a bit of nerves, that's all."

"Just nerves!" I protested, "Look at you, you're shaking!"

"Shove off, I haven't seen him all summer Jules!"

"I haven't seen Fred all summer either and you don't see me freaking out," I commented.

"That's different, you've known them since they were in diapers," she objected, "Plus, you've had other…objects of interest to keep you occupied."

"I'm serious Leesh…one word to anyone about that and I'll have your head," I threatened.

"Just because I promise not to tell anyone doesn't mean I don't get to pester you about it myself," she replied.

I rolled my eyes at her.

"Well I wish you would just relax," I said, referring once again to her jitters at seeing George again. "I guarantee George is the same lunatic he's always been."

"Well _I _wish you would just offer me some helpful advice instead of giving me such a hard time," she countered.

"I _am_ giving you helpful advice," I said, "George is your friend. You shouldn't be getting nervous around him. You'll come off as weird. You want him to like you don't you? You don't want him to be scared of you."

"They should be here by now, shouldn't they?" Alicia asked. Clearly she hadn't been listening to what I had been saying.

"Alicia! Get a grip!" I yelled, "They will be here—

I didn't get to finish telling her off for being such a git because I was interrupted by the arrival of Fred Weasley.

"Alicia Spinnet! What a sight you are!" he said frowning as he stepped out of the fireplace. George appeared moments later right behind him. "You really ought to do something about that wirey mop of hair you've got."

Fred sprang forward and took hold of a small section of Alicia's long dark hair.

"Pity, you really could have such lovely locks if you only took the time—

"Shut it, Fred," Alicia said defensively.

"Oh on the contrary my dear brother, I believe Miss Spinnet looks even more ravishing than the last time I lay eyes on her…if that's at all possible," George said cheekily, taking her hand in his and giving it a kiss.

Alicia blushed deeply and didn't reply. Clearly George's behaviour was too much for the girl to handle.

I rolled my eyes and the twins turned their attention on me.

"And our dear Juliet, look how you've grown," George announced, hugging me tightly.

"Yes, you're filling out quite nicely indeed," Fred commented, earning a smack from me.

"No he's right. I mean it's only been a month since we last saw each other, but Merlin that month has done wonders on your figure!" George agreed, eyeing me up and down as he circled me.

I smacked him on the side of the head just as I had done to Fred.

"I see you two haven't matured at all since school," I pointed out.

"Thank you," they said in unison.

"That wasn't a compliment," I said coldly.

George grabbed hold of me once again and pulled Alicia and Fred in to a group hug cheerfully.

"Look at us, all together again!" he yelled faking a sob of happiness.

"All that's missing are Lee and Katie," Fred commented, wiping non-existent tears from his eyes.

"Yeah, lucky wankers," I commented.

"Oh Juliet! How you kid! You act as if you haven't missed us at all!" Fred yelled, seemingly astonished.

"Yeah…kidding," I answered sarcastically.

"Someone's a wee bit bitter this morning," George said disapprovingly.

"I agree, maybe we should take Alicia home with us instead, she hasn't said a word," Fred pointed out.

I glanced at Alicia. She seemed to be having trouble finding her tongue.

_Is she really that self-conscious?_

I nudged her in the side to bring her back to her senses and she gave a start.

"I'm only silent because you two never shut up long enough to let anyone else say a word," she snapped.

I smirked at her.

"Well, never mind," George huffed, "I guess we won't be taking either of you back with us."

"It's too bad you're already stuck with me then," I said, breaking free from the huddle and shoving my trunk towards Fred.

"Ah I thought I heard you two."

The four of us turned to see Alicia's mum standing in the entrance of the living room wearing a pair of oven mitts.

"Good morning Mrs. Spinnet," the twins said simultaneously. Their voices sounded almost too innocent.

"Good morning boys," she answered with a hint of suspicion in her voice.

"We've just come to remove this trouble-maker from your lovely home," Fred told her cheekily.

"Nonsense, Juliet was a perfect house guest," she told them.

George looked at me in shock.

"You're saying she _behaved_ herself?!" he cried, looking back at Mrs. Spinnet with wide eyes.

"Clearly we haven't taught you well enough," Fred said shaking his head in disappointment.

"Are you three going to stay for lunch or are you expected back at the Burrow?" Mrs. Spinnet asked, chuckling at their behaviour.

"We'd love to stay, but Mum's already got lunch on the stove," George told her.

"Well I guess you'd better be off now," Mrs. Spinnet suggested, "You wouldn't want to keep your mother waiting. She's got enough to worry about as it is. I have no idea how your mother manages it, what with so many trouble makers like you two running around."

George nodded solemnly in agreement.

"I suppose Ron and Ginny really ought to learn to calm themselves down. It must be difficult for her to feed six hungry mouths and then some, never mind the trouble those two get in to," George said sadly.

"My guess is Ron and Ginny look like angels next to the two of you boys," Mrs. Spinnet said kindly but sternly. "Now run along, you wouldn't want to be late."

"Yes I suppose you're right," Fred agreed, taking my trunk by the handle.

"Thanks for everything Mrs. Spinnet," I said graciously. "And I'll see you at school Leesh."

I gave my friend a hug.

"Behave yourself," she whispered threateningly in my ear. "And remember; don't do anything until he's decided what he wants."

I smirked at her after backing away. "Yes mother."

Alicia then gave a quick hug to both of the twins. After a cheerful goodbye the three of us climbed in to the fireplace one by one and disappeared from Alicia's living room.

Moments later I had arrived at the Burrow safely, although a slight bit covered in soot.

I looked around at the living room of the Burrow fondly, taking in all of my surroundings. The same old tattered furniture was set up around a battered coffee table, and the pictures on the walls were all of Weasleys, some of which I didn't know, but they all had the same fiery red hair.

I have always loved the atmosphere at the Burrow. It was so homey and warm. I hadn't been to the Burrow since Christmas holidays of last year, and I hadn't realized how much I had missed it. I have three homes in the world: My own, Hogwarts, and the Burrow. And it definitely felt good to be back.

"Juliet!"

I jumped as Mrs. Weasley enveloped me in a hug.

"Hi Mrs. Weasley," I said, straining to speak under the weight of her hug.

It was then that George and then Fred appeared in the fireplace behind me.

"Mum if you don't stop squeezing her there'll be nothing left," Fred commented, pulling my trunk out of the fireplace.

"Yeah, let someone else have a go," George said, wrenching me out of Mrs. Weasley's grasp and pulling me into a bone-crunching hug of his own.

"Geeze George, you're all over me today aren't you?" I joked.

George laughed and winked at me while Fred looked slightly envious.

"I just missed you is all," he told me, ruffling my hair.

"What's going on?" I asked him suspiciously. "What do you want this time?"

"Why on earth would you assume I'm after something?" he asked. "I only missed you is all. You have no idea how difficult it is to get by with only this ugly wanker for company," he said, gesturing towards Fred, who scowled.

"Boys, take Juliet's things up to Ginny's room," Mrs. Weasley said sternly as she turned her attention to a delicious-smelling lunch on the stove.

Fred and George rolled their eyes and grumbled back at their mother before jointly carrying my trunk towards the stairs.

With a confused glance at Mrs. Weasley, who wouldn't meet my eyes, I followed the boys up the stairs.

"What was that all about?" I asked them once we had ditched my trunk in Ginny's bedroom.

"We've entered war with our mother," Fred told me.

"Over what?" I asked curiously.

"Firstly she was angry with us over our OWLs," George explained, leading the way to the twin's bedroom on the next floor.

"And then she found this," Fred told me, pulling out a crumpled bit of parchment from his pocket.

I took it from him and scanned over it.

"Weasley's Wizard Wheezes?" I said aloud, "What is this?"

They looked at me as if it were obvious.

I looked back down at the parchment. There were lists of Weasley twin inventions written down.

"You mean…" I said slowly, realization sinking in.

"We wanted to surprise you," George said with a smile.

"We've been thinking and planning all summer," Fred added.

"You're going through with it then?" I asked surprised.

"Of course we are!" George exclaimed, "We had a bit of a setback with Mum, but she'll get over it."

"She made us destroy a lot of our stuff though," Fred said, sounding annoyed and angry.

"Burned most of our order forms."

"She was furious."

"What's the big deal?" I questioned.

"I suppose she thinks a career in the wizard joke industry isn't a respectful enough path to travel down," George suggested, scowling along with his brother.

"Well that's utterly ridiculous," I commented, "If this is what you two want to do you should by all means go for it."

Fred and George grinned at me.

"We knew you'd support us," Fred said, slapping me on the back.

"Of course I will," I told them, "But to be honest I'm surprised you two are ambitious enough to get this far this soon."

"Well what else were we supposed to do with all of our free time?" George asked, "Homework?"

The twins laughed as if the idea was preposterous before continuing.

"All we need is some money to get us started," Fred said.

"But we've still got two school years before we really need to be worrying about that," George continued.

"Although it would be nice to get a little bit of a head start," Fred added.

"Well I suppose it's good to know you were doing something constructive this summer," I said, "Even if it wasn't schoolwork."

The two gave me identical grins again and I took the time to study my two best mates.

"And I must say, if it's possible you seem to have grown even more over the last month."

It was true. Fred and George definitely had gotten taller and, dare I say it, more sculpted. Although this change had probably been taking place every day, it was only now, having not seen them for weeks, that I had noticed a difference.

Aside from their body and height, their hair had grown a slight bit longer, although not overly so, as it was already long to begin with. Their eyes still sparkled with the same mischievous glint as they had always had, and with those smiling eyes brought a familiar sense of happiness to me.

"I'm guessing that's a good thing," Fred stated, noticing the ever-growing smile on my face, "And, like we said earlier-you've filled out nicely as well."

I rolled my eyes at them. I knew they were joking. I looked the same as I did last month; it was them that did the changing. I suppose this is normal however, as girls do mature faster than boys. Now sixteen, the twins would be starting to catch up…which meant their hormone levels were going to skyrocket…great.

_That also means Fred is only going to get better looking from here._

I blushed at little at the thought and tried to force it away.

"I haven't changed a bit and you know it."

"On the contrary love, you've changed quite a lot," Fred said winking at me.

I punched him in the arm and stuck the bit of parchment back in to his jean pocket.

"Trying to get into my pants now I see," he commented, earning another punch from me.

"Calm down you two, I can't have you ripping each other apart on our first day together in a month," George said.

"So, what's on the agenda for tonight boys?" I asked, taking a seat on George's bed and trying desperately not to let my eyes wander over to Fred's warm eyes, kind smile, and strong arms.

"Well, lunch is about ready," George replied, "And then we thought we'd kick your arse at Quidditch."

"Ha! Well we know that's not going to happen," I said, laughing at the mere suggestion of something so ridiculous occuring.

"She's right George. It wouldn't be polite of us to make a fool of our guest on her first night's stay."

"I agree Fred. Maybe we should let her win tonight, just to be nice."

"You two are gits."

"Now, now, that's not how you should be treating your hosts," Fred huffed.

"Well, my hosts should be doing a better job at taking care of their guest. I'm starving."

"Fred! George! Juliet! Lunch is ready!"

The twins smirked at me.

"Would you look at that," George snickered, "Lunch, just in time."

"I think you owe your hosts an apology."

"The only thing that's owed here is a good arse-kicking after lunch," I replied.

"Well, we tried to be nice, but it looks like she wants to be destroyed in Quidditch after all Fred," George commented.

"It sure looks that way George."

"Bring it on Weasleys."


	4. Fetching Harry

**A/N:** My goodness these past few weeks have been hectic. I've wanted to get another chapter up for a while, but with the holidays, school and work I've been quite busy. Thank you all for understanding that real life often gets in the way of writing, but that's just how it is. Anyway, enough of my babbling, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

* * *

**- CHAPTER FOUR-**

_Fetching Harry_

_Juliet Christie_

The old saying still holds true: Time flies when you're having fun.

Before I could even comprehend where the time went, the days of the summer holiday had trickled down to the single digits. I had spent my days goofing off with Fred and George. Every morning I would get up and hurry down for breakfast in my pyjamas. Afterwards I'd shower and get dressed, then head outside with the Weasleys for Quidditch until lunch. On nice days we were outside after dinner until the sky became too dark to see anything. Then we'd head in and the twins and I would sit by the fire until bed time when I would swallow a gulp of my Animagus potion and go to sleep.

I woke up in the morning and began my familiar morning routine. I headed downstairs for breakfast in my Mickey Mouse pyjamas(a character enjoyed by Muggle children) with my hair tied up in a messy bun. Ginny and Hermione (who had arrived at the Burrow a few days prior) were still sound asleep. It was already almost 11:00. Of course, the three of us had stayed up late throughout the night. Hermione and sparked a debate about the captivity and control of dragons. It had gotten pretty heated and lasted well past our normal bedtime.

I stumbled down the stairs in my socked feet into the kitchen. There the bright sunshine shone through the window and filtered into the room.

Usually I was met by Mrs. Weasley cooking eggs, bacon, pancakes, and all sorts of other breakfast foods, but this morning she was not there.

Glancing outside I saw her hanging clothes on the line. I thought about going out to offer help, but my stomach was growling from hunger.

Breakfast had been set out on the table for the family, and sitting at the table were two people with their backs facing me. They must have heard me enter because they turned to face me.

"Juliet!" the one on the right said. I immediately recognized him as Charlie. Next to him sat Bill. The two of them are the eldest of the Weasley children.

I cracked a smile.

"I didn't know you two would be here!" I exclaimed happily.

Bill stood up and opened his arms.

"Well come on, give us a hug," he said beaming at me.

I laughed as Bill hugged me tightly.

"I've missed you, you little hell-raiser," he said with affection.

"Yeah it's been a long time," I said grinning. "What's this you've got?"

I reached up and touched the earring dangling from his earlobe. It looked like a tooth.

"Silly looking isn't it?" Charlie asked with a chuckle.

"No not at all," I replied. "I wouldn't wear one, but it kind of suits you."

"Well thank you Juliet," Bill said.

"Mum isn't impressed though," Charlie commented.

I made a face. Mrs. Weasley definitely wouldn't approve.

Bill shrugged. "She'll get used to it eventually."

I took a seat at the table and had something to eat as Bill, Charlie and I continued to talk. It had been ages since I had seen the eldest Weasley brothers, as neither of them lived at home anymore. We had always gotten on well.

It was nearly half an hour later when Mr. Weasley and Ron came down the stairs. Ron immediately headed for the food in the kitchen, greeting his brothers as he entered.

"Ron you'll have to eat later. We're already late for picking up Harry," Mr. Weasley said as Ron stuffed a sausage into his mouth.

"Comfing," Ron replied, his mouth full.

"Now, now Ron, there are ladies present," Bill commented.

Ron swallowed hard.

"What? Her? She's hardly a lady."

Bill and Charlie laughed and I scowled.

"When did you become such a prat?" I asked. Ron used to be shy and timid around me.

He smirked at me and ruffled my hair. I glared at him.

"Ron get a move on! We really must get going," Mr. Weasley urged.

"Wait Dad! Fred and I are coming too!"

George appeared at the foot of the stairs. His grinning face was clearly visible from my seat in the kitchen.

"Why are you two so interested in tagging along?" Mr. Weasley asked suspiciously.

Fred bounded down the stairs.

"We've never been inside a Muggle house before," he said.

"Yeah, it'll be a good experience," George agreed, nodding along with his twin.

Mr. Weasley studied them for a moment, clearly not convinced by their act.

"Boys, if you come, you best behave yourselves," he said sternly.

The twins placed their hands over their hearts in a pledge to behave.

"Come on Dad, we're late," Ron urged.

"All right, let's get a move on then."

Mr. Weasley stepped into the fireplace.

"They're travelling by Floo Powder?" I asked.

Charlie and Bill shrugged.

"Guess so."

"Harry's aunt and uncle are in for a shock," I mumbled.

"Why's that?" Charlie asked.

"From what I understand, Muggles generally aren't accustomed to people bouncing in and out of fireplaces," I said, "But from what I've heard about Harry's aunt and uncle, they're much crankier than your average Muggle."

Bill laughed at the thought and the three of us glanced over at the fireplace. I was sure the twins would have quite the story to tell when they returned.

* * *

_Fred Weasley_

I woke up in the morning feeling an ache of excitement. It was the kind of ache I get when I have been behaving myself for far too long. Today would put an end to that, but first I needed to get myself out of bed. My insides were already churning from hunger as I hopped out of bed and woke George, but seen as how we were already late we would have to forgo breakfast.

"George! Ron and Dad are already downstairs, get up!" I yelled, giving him a good whack with my pillow.

George rolled out of bed and the two of us dressed hurriedly.

My chest was growing tight out of anticipation. It had been weeks since we'd had the chance to pull off a decent prank. And now we had a perfect subject.

I grabbed what I needed from a box under my bed and pulled a jumper over my head.

"Meet you downstairs," George said to me as he hurried out of the room to catch up with Dad.

I bounded out of the room after George, stopping on the third floor and poking my head in to Ginny's room.

Hermione and Ginny were sleeping soundly and Juliet was nowhere to be found.

_She must be downstairs already._

Without bothering to be quiet I hurried down the stairs, jumping over the last few.

I was met by George, Ron and Dad in the living room. I could see Juliet eating breakfast in the kitchen with Bill and Charlie.

"Why are you two so interested in tagging along?" Dad asked, eyeing George and I suspiciously.

"We've never been inside a Muggle house before," I said, throwing together a last minute excuse as to why we wanted to come along to fetch Harry.

Always on top of things, George added: "Yeah, it'll be a good experience."

The two of us nodded vigorously.

Dad studied us again for a minute, but I could tell from his expression that we were in the clear.

After a few more minutes of lectures and warnings Dad stepped into the fireplace, yelling out Harry's address. I followed suit, disappearing from the living room after Dad.

When I had stopped spinning and reached the proper fireplace I was met by Dad—only he hadn't managed to climb out yet. I felt my body being uncomfortably squished against the back wall of the fireplace interior. Then came Dad's voice.

"Fred, something's wrong, go back and stop George from—"

_Oofs_ and _awws_ from came from Dad and I as George joined the claustrophobic gathering in the fireplace.

"What's going on? Why are we stuck?" George asked.

"Mr. Weasley, can you hear me?"

"That's Harry," I said, straining to hear him.

"This is an electric fireplace, you'll have to go back," he said.

"Quick George, go back before Ron—"

"Ughh!" George grunted as our discomfort rose and Ron appeared amongst our numbers.

"What are we doing here? Has something gone wrong?"

Ron's face was now pushed up against my shoulder uncomfortably.

"Oh no Ron. No, this is exactly where we wanted to end up," I snapped.

_I should have just stayed home with Juliet._

"Yeah we're having the time of our lives here," George snickered.

After at least two more uncomfortable, cramped minutes of strained conversation between us and Harry, Dad warned everyone on the other side of the fireplace to stand back. Seconds later he blasted the fireplace apart and the four of us scrambled out in to the open air of the living room.

I immediately felt relief from being out, and almost laughed at the horrified faces of the Muggles in the room.

Harry's uncle was a wide, mean looking man with several chins and not nearly enough hair on top of his head. His face was glowing red with anger and fear. Harry's aunt, quite apart from her husband, looked like she could use a good meal or two. She looked downright appalled at the current situation.

I paid no attention to the awkward conversation going on as Dad tried to smooth things over with the Dursleys. I was glancing around the room, hoping to catch a glimpse of this Dudley character…Harry's cousin. Of course, he could be standing behind his father and I wouldn't have known. That man would take up three seats at our dinner table.

I glanced over at George and he grinned wickedly back at me. I then volunteered George and me to fetch Harry's trunk.

George and I hurried out of the room, leaving Dad and Ron to try and explain themselves to the Muggles.

The two of us climbed up the stairs quietly. We hoped Dudley would be drawn out by the commotion downstairs, but we didn't want him to hide in his bedroom by the sound of us clamouring up the stairs.

Unfortunately, we reached Harry's room, retrieved his trunk and made it back down the stairs without spotting the lad.

"Maybe he's not home?" George suggested as we lugged the trunk back towards the living room.

"Oh yes he is," I replied.

Standing in the living room cowering next to his mother was a boy of about the same proportions as his father. He was enormously large and quite stupid looking. George and I cracked identical evil grins.

It seemed Dad had managed to explain himself as best as he could to the Muggles, because he was now sprinkling Floo Powder on a newly lit fire. He gestured for me to come forward first.

"Coming," I said, making a move towards the fireplace, "Oh no-hang on—"

I looked down to see that I had successfully managed to spill the Ton-Tongue Toffees out of my pocket. The brightly coloured sweets were rolling all over the floor. I quickly bent down and shoved them back into my pockets, trying hard not to grin to myself. I then stood back up, waved cheerily to the three mortified Muggles and stepped into the fire.

"The Burrow," I said clearly, and the scene in front of me vanished.

Moments later George appeared, hauling Harry's trunk behind him. He was grinning from ear to ear.

"I didn't stick around to see the show," George said, "Shame we couldn't catch the end result."

Ron came out of the fireplace next. He looked back and forth from our excited faces, clearly confused.

"What did you two do?" he asked.

"Shh," I hushed him. Harry had just emerged from the fireplace.

"Did he eat it?" I asked excitedly, helping Harry climb out.

"Yeah. What _was_ it?" he asked.

"Ton-Tongue Toffee," I said. "George and I invented them. We've been looking for someone to test them on all summer."

George, Ron, Harry and I all exploded with laughter. Bill, Charlie and Juliet looked up from their game of Exploding Snap. They were still seated at the dining table, but Juliet was now properly dressed. Hermione and Ginny were also there, eating their late breakfast.

The group of us didn't have much time to tell the story to the others as Dad entered to ruin the fun.

He apparated into the room looking angrier than I've seen him in a long time.

"That _wasn't funny_, Fred! What on earth did you give that Muggle boy?" he asked, his face beat red. I could almost see the steam coming out of his ears.

"I didn't give him anything. I just _dropped_ it…it was his fault he went and ate it, I never told him to."

"You dropped it on purpose! You knew he'd eat it, you knew he was on a diet—"

"How big did his tongue get?" George asked.

"It was four foot long before his parents would let me shrink it!"

The whole room burst into laughter again, this time joined by those at the table. They had heard enough of the conversation to know what had happened at Privet Drive.

"It isn't _funny_! That sort of behaviour seriously undermines wizard-Muggle relations! I spend half my life campaigning against the mistreatment of Muggles, and my own sons—

I interrupted him, "We didn't give it to him because he was a Muggle!"

"No, we gave it to him because he's a great bullying git. Isn't he Harry?" George added.

"Yes he is Mr. Weasley," Harry agreed.

"That's not the point! You wait until I tell your mother—

"Tell me what?"

George and I turned to see Mum enter the room.

_Uh oh…_

Dad seemed to fumble about his mind. I knew he hadn't actually intended to tell Mum about what happened, but I guess we were in for it now…

"Tell me _what_, Arthur?"

Dad looked at her nervously.

"It's nothing Molly," he mumbled. "Fred and George just—but I've had words with them—

"What have they done this time?" she asked, sounding displeased. "If it's got anything to do with _Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes_—

The other occupants of the room didn't stick around to hear the rest of the argument. Bill and Charlie bolted into the backyard from the kitchen. Juliet, Hermione, Ginny, and Ron took Harry upstairs. I gazed after Juliet as she hurried along with the others. Mum was going to have my head so this may be the last time I would be able to look at her.

* * *

_Juliet Christie_

"What are _Weasley's Wizard Wheezes_?" Harry asked as Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and I climbed up the stairs in order to avoid Mrs. Weasley's wrath.

Ron, Ginny and I laughed, but Hermione did not.

"Mum found this stack of order forms when she was cleaning Fred and George's room," Ron explained, "Great long price-lists for stuff they've invented. Joke stuff, you know. Fake wands and trick sweets, loads of stuff. It was brilliant, I never knew they'd been inventing all that..."

I stayed silent while Ron spilled the situation to Harry. Fred and George hadn't told me the whole story about their mother finding out about the joke shop. In fact, even though I was aware of these Weasley inventions, I hadn't even known how serious they were about it.

"Juliet knew, didn't she?" Hermione asked, eyeing me suspiciously. She clearly did not approve of Fred and George's behaviour, much like their mother.

The group turned their attention to me, waiting for my reply.

I shrugged.

"Of course I knew."

Hermione gave a small _hmph_ of disapproval.

"Well, we've been hearing explosions out of their room for ages, but we never thought they were actually _making_ things, we thought they just liked the noise," Ginny explained.

I snickered.

"Only, most of the stuff—well, all of it, really—was a bit dangerous," Ron added.

I rolled my eyes, earning myself another cold look from Hermione. Fred and George are brilliant with their experiments. They're not likely to cause any serious harm to themselves…not intentionally anyway.

Ron and Ginny continued to explain to Harry about Fred and George's joke shop dreams until Percy opened his door on the second landing. He stuck his head out into the corridor.

"Hi Percy," Harry said politely.

"Oh, hello, Harry. I was wondering who was making all the noise. I'm trying to work in here; you know—I've got a report to finish for the office—and it's rather difficult to concentrate when people keep thundering up and down the stairs."

"We're not _thundering_," Ron protested, "We're walking. Sorry if we disturbed the top-secret workings of the Ministry of Magic."

I snickered again at Ron's comment.

"What are you working on?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Percy. Do enlighten us," I said sarcastically.

Percy clearly mistook my comment for interest because he proceeded to tell us all about his report on the regulation of cauldron thickness. _Snore_!

Midway through Percy's explanation I decided that watching Mrs. Weasley murder two of her sons was certainly better than listening to this fool drone on. So, I turned on the spot and headed back downstairs the way I came, earning myself a comment about being rude from Percy.

When I returned to the kitchen I could tell Mrs. Weasley was still fuming mad. No one else was in sight, so I assumed they had all gone outside…possibly to grieve for two of their family members who were now buried in the backyard. Either that, or the twins had managed an escape, and everyone was now outdoors enjoying life while they still had the chance. Merlin knows when Mrs. Weasley's temper could be set off again.

"Dinner's almost ready dear," Mrs. Weasley said calmly. She didn't fool me; I could tell she was still angry with the twins.

"Do you need any help with anything?" I asked politely.

"If you could just bring those plates outside for me dear that would be lovely," she replied.

I obeyed and carried out several heavy plates into the backyard where I could immediately hear many screams and yells of laughter coming from the others.

Making my way over, I could see what all the fuss was about. Bill and Charlie had their wands out and were making two battered tables fly high above the lawn. They seemed to be having a sort of battle between the two of them. The tables were smashing into each other high above everyone's heads. Fred and George were cheering Bill and Charlie on.

Ginny, Harry, Ron and Hermione came out into the yard next, each carrying something else for Mrs. Weasley. Ron almost tripped over Hermione's cat. It was running around the yard attempting to catch the potato-like gnomes that live in the gardens.

"What on earth?" I heard Hermione say from behind me. She was referring to the battle of the tables going on above us.

Ron and Harry laughed along with George and Fred as Bill's table caught Charlie's, causing one leg to be knocked right off.

The commotion caused Percy to poke his head out of his bedroom window.

"Will you keep it down?" he yelled angrily.

"Sorry Perce," Bill said with a grin, "How're the cauldron bottoms coming on?"

"Very badly," Percy answered, slamming his window shut.

Bill and Charlie snickered along with the rest of us as they put the tables right again.

By seven o'clock the tables were set and the nine Weasleys, Harry, Hermione, and I were eating under the clear, deep-blue sky.

At the far end of the table, Percy was talking to Mr. Weasley about Ministry of Magic business.

"We've got another big event to organize after the World Cup," Percy said, clearing his throat in an attempt to grab our attention.

"_You_ know the one I'm talking about, Father. The top-secret one," he said pompously.

I looked at him with both loathing and curiosity. Maybe this was the same top-secret event that Alicia's parents had been talking about.

Seated in between Bill and George, I listened in to Mrs. Weasley arguing with Bill about his new earring and long hair.

"I really wish you would let me cut it," she said in an almost desperate voice. "What do the folk at the bank think?"

"They don't care, Mum," Bill said irritably.

"You look ridiculous," Mrs. Weasley protested.

"Juliet doesn't think I look ridiculous, do you Jules?" Bill asked, turning to me expectantly.

"No, not at all," I answered automatically.

"See," Bill pointed out to his mother.

"She's only saying that because she's had a crush on you since she was seven," Fred interrupted.

"Fred!" I said angrily, glaring at him angrily.

It was a well-known fact that I had had a childhood crush on Bill Weasley. Of course, I was only a little girl and Bill had thought it was endearing at the time, but I still hate when it gets brought up.

Fred shrugged and threw me a crooked grin.

"It's true isn't it?" he asked.

"The fact that Juliet has a crush on me doesn't mean a thing," Bill said with a chuckle, "She still thinks I look alright and that's all that matters."

"I don't have a crush on you _now_," I told him.

"You're telling me this today, just as you're getting old enough to be with me? Go and destroy my dreams, why don't you," Bill joked.

The light-hearted conversation continued on for a good few hours. My stomach was full of delicious food and my heart was content at being around so many people I enjoy spending time with… and Percy, of course.

It wasn't until the sun had set and candles had been lit that Mrs. Weasley interrupted the festivities.

"Look at the time! You really should be in bed, the whole lot of you," she said, "You'll be up at the crack of dawn to get to the Cup."

There were several groans as everyone realized how early we would all be getting up the next morning.

Slowly, everyone began to stand up and carry their cutlery back into the kitchen so they could be cleaned.

"Harry, if you leave your school list out, I'll get your things for you tomorrow in Diagon Alley. I'm getting everyone else's. There might not be time after the World Cup. The match went on for five days last time," Mrs. Weasley told him.

"Wow, hope it does this time!" Harry said excitedly.

"Well, I certainly don't. I _shudder_ to think what the state of my in-tray would be if I was away from work for five days," Percy piped up as he cleared his spot on the table.

"Yeah, someone might slip dragon dung in it again, eh Perce?" Fred laughed.

"That was a sample of fertiliser from Norway! It was nothing _personal_!" Percy objected.

Getting up from the table along with everyone else, I heard Fred whisper:

"It was. We sent it."

* * *

**A/N:** There wasn't too much interaction between Juliet and Fred in this chapter, but I do have most of the next chapter already written. As all of you have probably figured out, the next chapter Juliet and the Weasleys set off for the Quidditch World Cup. And, all of you probably recall that they meet Cedric along the way…

In case any of you don't know what I'm getting at, or can't remember what happened last, in chapter 2 Juliet met up with Cedric at the Ministry of Magic party and she hasn't yet told Fred and George about it…I think this meeting with the Diggory's could be interesting, don't you?

Thanks for all of the reviews so far, you guys are great!


	5. Off to the Quidditch World Cup

**A/N:** I'm amazed at how many reviews I've been getting for this story. Only four chapters up and I've had more than half of the reviews I got in total for "Strange Things Come in Threes". Thanks for all of the support you guys, you're all great!

Sorry about the confusion in the last chapter when I switched to Fred's point of view. From now on I will indicate any switches I make.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER FIVE ---**

_Off to the Quidditch World Cup_

I felt as though I had barely drifted off to sleep before I was being awakened by Mrs. Weasley.

"Get up Juliet, Hermione, Ginny," she said loudly, "You've got quite a bit of walking to do this morning and you'll be setting off soon."

She gave me a little prod so as to force me out of my pleasant plunder.

"Five more minutes Moll' please?" I groaned, pushing my face into my pillow.

"Hurry up now or you'll be left behind," she warned as she ripped open the curtains to Ginny's bedroom. It didn't do any good—the sun was not up yet.

I groaned and rolled onto my back, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I could hear Ginny and Hermione awakening as well.

"Best put on something warm," Mrs. Weasley advised, "It's a bit nippy outside."

Feeling more exhausted than when I had gone to sleep, I forced myself up out of bed. It was so dark in the room that I had to feel around for the clothes I had laid out for myself the previous night.

I could feel cool air coming in through a crack in the window. I shivered.

Ginny and Hermione sat up in their beds and Mrs. Weasley, satisfied that we were all awake, hurried out of the room to raise the others.

As soon as she had left, Ginny and Hermione flopped back down on to their pillows. I longed to do the same, but I knew I had to get dressed now. If I were to go back to bed I surely would never wake up again.

I got myself dressed as quickly as I could—it was a difficult feat with nothing but a small candle to light up the room. I pulled on a pair of jeans and a warm sweater over my t-shirt to ensure I wouldn't freeze in the night air.

Holding up the candle, I peered inside my bag to double-check that I hadn't forgotten anything. I had brought a change of clothing and my Animagus potion, along with any other necessities I thought I might need. Satisfied that I had it all, I fastened my bag back up and stuck my wand into the pocket of my jeans.

"You two better start getting up," I said to Ginny and Hermione as I headed out the door of Ginny's room. I could already hear faint chatter from downstairs. It sounded as though the boys were already up.

When I had reached the bottom of the stairs I was met by Mr. Weasley. He was grinning at me from ear to ear, wearing a very old pair of jeans which were far too big for him. He had paired them with a thick leather belt. He gave me an expectant look.

"Very Muggle-like," I mumbled, heading for the kitchen.

As I predicted, all of the boys were already sitting around the table when I arrived. They were picking at the breakfast laid out in front of them, but I doubted anyone was particularly hungry at this hour.

I plopped down in a seat next to Harry and lay my head down on the table. Everyone around me looked equally exhausted. I envied Charlie, Bill and Percy. They're Apparating later in the morning.

"Why do we have to be up so early?" Ginny asked as she too arrived. She took a seat at the table and rubbed her eyes furiously.

"We've got a bit of a walk," Mr. Weasley said from the kitchen entrance.

"Walk? What, are we walking to the World Cup?" Harry asked. He was far too excited about this whole process for my liking. Sure, it's awesome to be going to the Quidditch World Cup, but enthusiasm at this hour? No thank you.

I closed my eyes and listened to Mr. Weasley explain to Harry about travelling by portkey. I had almost drifted off at the kitchen table when Mrs. Weasley's screech jolted me awake.

"George!"

"What?" George asked in an innocent tone.

"What is that in your pocket?"

I knew immediately what she was referring to without even seeing what had happened. Fred and George had been intending to sneak their inventions out of the house and into the hands of potential buyers now that they've decided they're serious about this _Weasley's Wizard Wheezes_ thing.

"Busted boys," I commented, lifting my head up to watch the action.

George glared at me.

"Nothing!" he said to his mother.

"Don't you lie to me! _Accio_!"

Mrs. Weasley pointed her wand at George and several small, brightly coloured candies flew out of his pocket.

George made a wild grab for them as they zoomed towards Mrs. Weasley's outstretched hand. They flew right by my head before reaching Mrs. Weasley.

"We told you to destroy them!" she yelled furiously. "We told you to get rid of the lot! Empty your pockets; go on, both of you!"

I watched the pitiful display of Mrs. Weasley retrieving all of the sweets from Fred and George in silence. Sometimes Mrs. Weasley can be quite scary. She's got a mean temper that woman.

Fred and George protested angrily as Mrs. Weasley gathered their hard work and tossed it into the trash can under the sink.

All three of them looked angry enough to set any one of us on fire if we spoke to them, so the rest of the group remained in an awkward silence for the rest of breakfast.

I was thankful when Mr. Weasley announced our departure, even if I wasn't really up for a cold walk in the dark. At least the atmosphere would be a little less angry.

Collectively, the group of us rose from the table and bade farewell to Mrs. Weasley…well, all of us except the twins, who marched out quickly and angrily without a word.

Mrs. Weasley bustled out of the kitchen to say farewell to our group as we headed out the front door. The others all began to trickle out of the room after her, and I took the moment as an opportunity to retrieve what Fred and George had lost.

As quickly as I could I ripped open the cupboard under the sink and grabbed two handfuls of Fred and George's sweets. Hurriedly, I shoved them into the pocket of my sweater, hoping the bulge wouldn't be too obvious.

I gave Mrs. Weasley a hurried farewell, blocking my stomach from her view with my bag held in front of me, and bolted out of the door. It was probably a bit suspicious, but I ran to catch up to Fred and George anyway without looking back. I'm not her child anyway, she wouldn't punish me for stealing the twins' candies back…I hope.

It was extremely chilly outside and the sky was just as dark as it had been when I woke up. The moon was still out as we set off.

I could see Fred and George standing at the edge of the Weasley property line. Apparently they were waiting for me to catch up.

I took a glance behind me and saw that Mr. Weasley and the others were a safe distance away. Mr. Weasley was talking to Harry about something or other, so, while he was distracted I decided now would be a good time to return the twins' belongings to them. We may not ever be alone again.

"Thanks for waiting, boys," I said as we fell into step together.

I dug my hands into my pocket. They were already freezing cold from the early morning air.

"Here," I said, shoving the candy into George's hands, "Next time be more careful."

Fred and George observed me with a look of surprise on their faces.

"How did you get these?" George asked, sounding astonished.

"You've forgotten how stealthy I am," I replied cheekily.

The two of them laughed and Fred slapped me on the back.

"I knew you were good for something," he said with a chuckle.

My hands, feet, nose, and cheeks were freezing by the time we had reached the location where the portkey was supposed to be. Thankfully my ears had been saved from the cold as Fred had offered me his hat. I still longed for mittens, even with my hands crammed into my pocket.

The majority of the walk had been in silence. The cold paired with our exhaustion had left us all unwilling and unable to carry on much of a conversation.

When we had reached our destination, light had started to brighten the landscape, although it was still well before my usual rising time.

Mr. Weasley instructed all of us to spread out and begin searching for the portkey.

We did as we were told and began looking in different directions.

Fred followed me into a small wooded area just off the path. We peered around at the ground looking for a piece of trash or an old object that could be functioning as the portkey.

"See anything?" I asked Fred, who was a few paces away from me.

"Nope," he answered.

I pulled my hands out of the pocket of my sweater and rubbed them together.

Fred approached me, reaching out and tugging on the strings of his hat perched on the top of my head. He grinned.

"What is it?" I asked as he played with the strings, smiling down at me.

"Look at you all cold and flushed," he teased, "You look downright adorable."

I smirked at him.

"Adorable, really? My first thought would have been ridiculous," I said.

"Well of course you look ridiculous," Fred replied, "But what kind of a gentleman would I be if I told you the truth?"

I shook my head.

"And since when have you been a gentleman?"

Before Fred got a chance to argue his case, Mr. Weasley's voice called us back to the trail.

I made a move to head back to the group, but Fred stopped me.

"What is it?" I asked.

He held out his arm to me. "Allow me to escort you, m'lady," he said.

I rolled my eyes at him, and pushed past, hurrying towards the others.

"Well that's not very courteous," Fred called after me as he hurried to catch up.

"Well I guess I'm not courteous then," I replied.

The two of us laughed light-heartedly, but it was quickly cut short when we reached our group. I choked on my laughter as I spotted two new faces amongst our numbers—Cedric Diggory and his father.

My eyes widened and I had to remind myself to breathe. I had no idea that he lived near here…I guess the twins never mentioned it.

Suddenly I felt neither tired nor cold, but quite uncomfortable. I hadn't told Fred or George about seeing Cedric at the Ministry party and I hadn't intended for them to find out…they're not exactly fond of him.

"Amos!" Mr. Weasley greeted as I prayed to be left unnoticed.

Mr. Diggory shook hands with Mr. Weasley. In his other hand he held on to a ruddy old boot. I assumed it was the portkey…either that or Amos Diggory was a fond collector of garbage…the first seemed more likely.

"This is Amos Diggory everyone," Mr. Weasley said, introducing him to all of us. I tried very hard to disappear behind Fred and George.

"Works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures," Mr. Weasley continued, "and I think you know his son, Cedric?"

Instinctively I looked towards Cedric.

"Hi," was all he said as he glanced around at all of us. His gaze seemed to linger a little longer on me and he gave me a friendly grin.

Of course, because I was standing behind Fred and George, they obviously noticed this unusual occurrence. As far as they knew, Cedric and I had never spoken outside of a Quidditch match before. The fact that he was giving me a friendly smile would seem very odd to them.

I could feel myself blush from the pressure I was feeling as I smiled back at him. I felt extremely ridiculous under Fred's silly hat. Hopefully my cheeks were too rosy from the cold for anyone to notice my discomfort.

Cedric looked away, apparently taking no notice of my embarrassment. Fred, on the other hand, shot me a suspicious look. I smiled sheepishly back at him, hoping a small smile from the enemy was as bad as it was going to get.

"Are these all yours, Arthur?" Mr. Diggory asked.

"Oh no, only the red heads," he replied.

I wanted to remind him that I am, in fact, a red-head as well, but I didn't want to draw attention to myself. Of course it was an easy mistake for Mr. Weasley to make—my hair's more of an auburn colour…it's too dark to be Weasley hair really. _I wonder how I would look with Weasley hair? Probably not great…I don't think I have the right skin for it, plus, then I'd have to take in the account of freckles—_

"Are you ok?"

I snapped my head up to see George staring at me with a look of concern.

"Yeah, I'm why…fine…good?" I said, mentally slapping myself for my babbling.

George gave me a weird look, but didn't say anything else.

"This is Hermione, friend of Ron's," Mr. Weasley said.

_Oh no, he's introducing everyone._ I crossed my fingers, hoping I wouldn't be recognized by Mr. Diggory. I hadn't met him at the party, so I might get lucky.

Mr. Weasley continued, "…and Juliet—a friend of Fred and George—and—"

"Juliet?" Mr. Diggory interrupted.

_Uh oh._

I bit my lip and clenched my fists.

"Cedric, is this the girl you were so taken with at the party this summer?" he asked, turning towards Cedric.

_Oh shit._

I saw Cedric turn red and I'm sure I looked just about as embarrassed as he did.

"Please Dad, not now," Cedric begged, sounding a little angry.

I refused to turn my head, but I could see Fred and George turn towards me out of the corner of my eye. I imagined identical looks of shock and bewilderment on their faces. I was also aware of everyone else's attention on me. I fought hard not to die of embarrassment.

"She's very pretty son. I only just got a glance of her at the party—"

"Dad!" Cedric interrupted hastily.

"Oh Cedric, no need to be bashful," Mr. Diggory said, "Now Arthur, you were saying?"

"Yes, um…this is Harry—another friend," Mr. Weasley continued awkwardly.

"Merlin's beard. Harry? Harry _Potter_?"

I let a breath of air out of my lungs. I hadn't realized I had been holding my breath. Thank Merlin the attention was now on Harry…but the damage had already been done.

I avoided meeting Fred's eyes as Amos launched into a conversation boasting about the Hufflepuff versus Gryffindor match in which Harry fell off of his broom, allowing Cedric to catch the snitch and win the game. Cedric looked extremely uncomfortable as his father continued to make an ass out of himself.

I've decided I'm not a fan of that man.

"Must be nearly time," Mr. Weasley said, interrupting the awkward conversation. The tension in the air was rapidly thickening, and my head was about to explode from the pressure.

Everyone gathered together and took hold of the mouldy old boot. I stood between Fred and George, who squished into me from both sides. They seemed keen on keeping Cedric away from me.

Mr. Weasley counted down and within seconds the group of us was being jerked forward by an invisible force.

When we stopped we were in a massive heap on the ground. Well, all of us but Amos, Cedric, and Mr. Weasley.

There were many grumbles and groans as everyone stood up carefully. Cedric offered me his hand.

For a split second I thought about swatting it away, but I thought otherwise. It certainly isn't his fault that his father is such a prick, nor is he to blame for Fred and George's blatant dislike for him. There's no sense in me behaving uncivilly towards him just because I've managed to anger the twins.

I took his hand and he hauled me up off of the ground, greeting me with a smile when I was back on my feet.

"I'm really sorry about my dad," he said sheepishly as I wiped the dirt off of my jeans. "He's like that all of the time."

"Don't worry about it," I said, although it was hard to hide my annoyance towards his dunce of a father.

"I hope you're not angry," he said, looking bashful once again. It was odd seeing him that way. Not once did he seem at all shy at the Ministry party. I assumed it was due to the fact that now he was speaking to me in front of his father and my two overly-protective best friends whereas at the party we were alone.

"No, of course not…it's—it's not—your father's a dolt," I said with a laugh.

Cedric cracked a smile. The fact that I was joking about it must have made him feel better. Too bad it didn't really work for me.

"Yeah, he's not exactly a conversational wizard," Cedric agreed.

"Was that your attempt at a joke?" I asked, laughing, "A pun? Cedric, I thought you were cleverer than that."

The two of us shared a laugh until someone cleared their throat loudly behind me.

"Ahem—Juliet, care to join us?"

I turned around momentarily to see an impatient looking pair of red-heads standing behind me…make that impatient and _angry_ red-heads.

I turned back to Cedric and rolled my eyes.

"Your father's not the only dolt around here," I said quietly.

Cedric grinned. "Bit protective are they?" he asked.

"A smidgen," I replied, nodding.

I could almost feel Fred and George's glares burning holes into Cedric's skull.

"So, I'll see you around," he said, realizing he had lingered long enough. "Tell Harry I'm sorry about my dad talking about him like that. I've told him a thousand times about the Dementors knocking him off of his broom—"

"No worries, I'll tell him," I interrupted. If he didn't leave soon the twins would probably rip him to shreds.

I gave him a small wave as he hurried off towards his father, and then turned to meet the disapproving stares of the Weasley twins.

"Looks like your dad's got everything sorted out," I said nodding towards Mr. Weasley. "We'd better get a move on or they'll leave without us."

I walked past the twins towards the group in an attempt to avoid any awkward conversation. My attempt failed.

"What was that?" George asked pointedly.

"I said: we had better get a move on," I replied.

"No," George said, "What was Amos Diggory talking about?"

"About you and Cedric," Fred clarified.

"And why was Diggory talking to you like you know each other? Like you're…_friends_?" George interrogated.

Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Ron seemed to sense that there was tension between the three of us. As soon as we had caught up to the group they hurried along in front of us, following Mr. Weasley. Ron seemed to be trying to eavesdrop, but Hermione kept prodding him along, scolding him about privacy.

"Me and Cedric?" I repeated.

"Yes. What was Diggory's father talking about? _Why_ were you at a party with that sodding loser?" Fred asked fiercely.

I scoffed.

"First of all, I was not at a party with Cedric," I replied, "I went there with Alicia. And second: Cedric is not a loser."

"Wanker then, same difference," George muttered.

I glared at him.

"I don't know why you two have such a problem with him anyway. It's not like he's done anything to you," I said angrily.

"You heard what he's been telling his father about Harry—about Gryffindor's Quidditch team," Fred stated.

"Cedric didn't tell his father any of those things. It's not his fault his Dad's a git—and one not unlike yourself either," I snapped back.

"Where do you think his father got all of these stories then, eh?" Fred asked, ignoring my stab at him.

George cleared his throat, "Well to be honest mate, it did sound like Cedric was trying to set the record straight with what happened to Harry."

"Thank you George," I said, feeling a slight bit of relief that at least one of them has some brains in there somewhere.

"I still don't like him though," he replied stubbornly.

"Well I don't care if you don't like him—either of you," I said heatedly.

I honestly don't know why I had become so keen on defending Cedric. If an argument like this had come up two months ago I would have agreed with the twins. Plus, the two of them are my best friends. Why do I feel the need to stand up for Cedric whom I hardly know?

"What happened between you two?" Fred asked suspiciously.

I could definitely hear anger and jealousy in his voice.

I looked at George for support. Even if he didn't like Cedric, he was certainly the more rational of the two. Of course, George wouldn't like it if something had happened between Cedric and me, but unlike Fred, George doesn't have feelings for me that run beyond friendship. He would be the first one to stand up for me in this situation.

George considered the question for a minute.

"I'd kind of like to know the answer to that too," he said, eyeing me.

I scoffed again.

"Well, not that it's any of your business, but _nothing_."

"Why didn't you tell us you saw him at the party then?" Fred asked.

"Excuse me?" I said, disbelievingly.

"Why didn't you tell us you saw him if _nothing_ happened?" Fred repeated.

I gaped at him. By this point I realized I wasn't defending Cedric so much as I was defending myself and my right to converse with whomever I want.

"So I have to tell you two everything?"

"When it involves seeing other guys, yeah!" Fred yelled.

I stopped walking and glanced at George. He looked uncomfortable and surprised. Fred glared at me from beside him.

"You have no right to control what guys I talk to," I said, my voice shaking with anger.

"Why not?" Fred asked loudly. He had also stopped walking.

The rest of the group had continued on, but I knew they had heard us yelling at each other.

I bit my lip in anger as George tried to tell Fred to calm down. He seemed to sense that this was not going to end well if Fred didn't apologize. Even if George does hate Cedric he knows that neither of them have the right to tell me not to speak to him.

"You should let it go, she said nothing happened, mate," George said quietly, "The guy's a git, sure, but it's not that big a deal."

Fred ignored George and glared at me.

I rolled my eyes and turned to walk away. If he wasn't going to listen to reason then I didn't want to speak to him.

"Answer the question Juliet!" he yelled at me.

I turned on my heel to face him again. My anger had built up to a bursting point.

"Because Fred!" I yelled back, "Because in case you haven't noticed, you and I are_ not together_!"

I gave him one last cold look before turning my back on him and hurrying to catch up to the others.


	6. The World Cup

**A/N:** I must say: I love all of you guys and your reviews. I'd like to give a shout out to "Swinet" who reviewed nearly all of the chapters of _Strange Things Come in Threes_ as well as the first five chapters of this story in nearly one sitting. I'm glad to see that I've got new readers coming in along with all of my loyal reviewers who have been with me since the beginning of this tale. All of you are great!

Again I'm sorry for such a long wait, but real life simply must take top rank these days. I will do my best to get updates up as soon as possible, but if they're late I really can't help it.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER SIX ---**

_The World Cup_

I didn't speak to Fred much after our little row earlier today.

My reasoning? Not that I really need to explain myself, but here goes:

Fred is acting like a downright pathetic prat. I have no idea what pushed him into believing that he has the right to control who I speak to. Why should I care if it upsets him when I flirt with someone else? As I told him earlier: _we're not together_. He's had plenty of time to just tell me how he feels—I would have gladly been his girlfriend if he had only asked me. But now, he's got us into this bad situation because he couldn't just make up his mind about what to do.

It's his own bloody fault for messing with my head all of last year. In fact, I think next time I see Cedric I should flirt with him a little extra, just to prove that Fred doesn't control me.

Alicia's right. If Fred isn't ready to commit to me then I should move on. Maybe if I do he'll realize what he's missing.

On a happier note, even though I do hate Fred at the moment, George has warmed up to me again. He had been a tad upset about the whole Cedric affair, but he reckoned Fred was overreacting.

"Diggory _is_ a bloody prat," George had said to me, "But if nothing happened between you two then there's no harm done."

Unfortunately Fred was far less understanding. In fact, he's too thick-headed and arrogant to just admit he's wrong and apologize. We both know I did nothing wrong.

So, with Fred and I avoiding each other's eyes, the whole group of us had set up camp and eventually a fire (Mr. Weasley got a little carried away with the matches meaning it took three times as long as it would regularly).

Aside from the set up of camp, we had also had a visit from Ludo Bagman, with whom the twins had managed to set up a bet about the outcome of the match.

The idiots wasted their entire life savings on a bet that's highly unlikely. It seems they think Ireland will win but Krum will catch the snitch. Fat chance that'll happen…I wish there was some way I could root for George to win the money but not Fred.

Once Bagman had come along, Barty Crouch joined in on the group. Next to Bagman he seemed powerful, strict, and harsh. He didn't seem like an overly pleasant man, but Percy had certainly taken a shine to him.

"Mr. Crouch!" Percy exclaimed with a bow as Crouch arrived, "Would you like a cup of tea?"

Mr. Crouch looked at Percy with mild surprise.

"Oh," he said, "Yes—thank you, Weatherby."

Fred and George choked into their own cups of tea and Fred and I instinctively locked eyes to laugh at Percy's expense. I quickly recovered, remembering how furious I am with him, and looked away. He did the same, quickly removing his gaze from mine.

The moment was brief, but awkward nonetheless.

_Apparently he still thinks I'm the one at fault…stupid git._

Fred had me frustrated beyond belief. It's amazing how angry one person can make you. I honestly don't know what I'm supposed to do. I wish there was some kind of rulebook—a friendship guideline or something. Obviously I know he's just jealous and overreacting, but does that mean I should wait for him to talk to me or should I confront him about it? If this is going to go away he'll have to admit he's wrong and apologize, but am I supposed to wait around for it to happen? Should I take it into my own hands? Should I strangle him until he realizes his faults? I just don't know.

"So, been keeping fairly busy, Barty?" Ludo Bagman asked.

"Fairly," Mr. Crouch replied, "Organizing Portkeys across five continents is no mean feat, Ludo."

"I expect you'll both be glad when this is over?" Mr. Weasley asked.

"Glad!" Bagman sounded shocked, "Don't know when I've had more fun…still, it's not as though we haven't got anything to look forward to, eh, Barty? Plenty left to organize eh?"

Fred, George, Ron, Harry, Hermione, Ginny and I all looked up at Mr. Bagman curiously.

Mr. Crouch raised his eyebrows at Bagman, having noticed the attention they had attracted from all of us. "We agreed not to make the announcement until all the details—"

"Oh, details!" Bagman said, waving his hand as if the matter were trivial, "They've signed, haven't they? They've agreed, haven't they? I bet you anything these kids'll know soon enough anyway. I mean, it's happening at Hogwarts—"

We all perked up to listen intently, but Crouch interrupted Bagman before he got to say anything more.

"Ludo, we need to meet the Bulgarians, you know," he said quickly, "Thank you for the tea, Weatherby."

I let out an aggravated sigh as Mr. Crouch returned his undrunk tea to Percy and then hurried Bagman away.

_What does everyone know that we don't?_

We watched them disapparate, and as soon as they had gone, we turned our attention to Mr. Weasley. Clearly he knew what was going on.

"What's happening at Hogwarts, Dad?" Fred asked, voicing everyone's thoughts. "What were they talking about?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Mr. Weasley replied with a smile.

"Its classified information, until such time as the Ministry decides to release it," Percy said pompously, "Mr. Crouch was quite right not to disclose it."

Everyone looked at Percy irritably.

"Oh, shut up, Weatherby," Fred snapped.

---

The sky was beginning to darken when salesmen came by selling all sorts of Quidditch goods. There was a huge variety of both Bulgarian and Ireland souvenirs and we all poured over the selection eagerly.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron each got a pair of omnioculars, and I followed suit. They would definitely come in handy during the match, and I was excited to try them out. Unfortunately I didn't have much pocket money left afterwards so I didn't purchase anything else.

Everyone left the souvenir stands with lighter pockets, but with increased excitement about the World Cup. Fred and George were the only ones who didn't buy anything, and that was due to the fact that they had already spent their money on their ridiculous bet.

_Serves them right._

A booming gong sounded from somewhere beyond the woods and then green and red lanterns began to illuminate the trees, lighting a path to the pitch.

Mr. Weasley grinned at us all excitedly, "It's time! Come on, let's go!"

Exchanging grins with George, I followed Mr. Weasley into the wood along with the rest of the group. Noises of thousands of excited people hurrying in the same direction flooded the air around us. Everyone was laughing, singing, and talking loudly—well, almost everyone.

I thought maybe the infectious feel-good atmosphere would perhaps put Fred in a better mood and maybe it would allow for us to make up and enjoy the game together, but he was still as grumpy as ever. He refused to meet my gaze when I tried to get his attention.

_If only he would apologize._

It took us about twenty minutes to reach the stadium. When we did I stared up at the massive golden walls surrounding the pitch.

Mr. Weasley spotted the look of awe on our faces.

"Seats a hundred thousand," he said.

Mr. Weasley led us to the nearest entrance point of the pitch. There was already a huge crowd of people waiting to get through, chattering excitedly.

I wasn't paying attention to where I was going as my eyes were still glued up at the height of the stadium. I was suddenly yanked forward into the crowd of people.

"Juliet," George said, "Would you mind keeping your head down to earth until we get out of here?"

I smiled sheepishly and held on to George's arm to ensure I didn't get lost in the sea of over-excited fans as he led me towards the rest of the group.

As we waited for our turn to get through the door, I began to get shoved by people surrounding me. At one point I was the recipient of a particularly violent push and I turned around to retaliate.

I was met by a foul-looking older man who stood about two feet taller than me. He smelled disgusting and looked as though if I stepped out of line he would squash me without any guilt whatsoever. Fortunately, George noticed the death-glare exchange between me and the ogre behind me.

He grabbed hold of my shoulders and moved me directly in front of him.

"I didn't think I would have to look after you this much," he said into my ear.

"Oh?" I asked.

"I don't remember you being such a child," he said smirking.

George took hold of my hand and held it firmly while a Ministry official checked our tickets. I was grateful to have him there to prevent me getting trampled by troll-like men.

"Prime seats!" the witch said to Mr. Weasley, "Top Box! Straight upstairs, Arthur, and as high as you can go!"

The whole group of us began to climb up the stairs and George dropped my hand once we were away from the pushing crowd.

When we reached our box I was pleased to see that we were situated exactly half way between the two sets of goals.

"Looks like we'll have a good view of everything!" George commented happily.

The stadium looked just as massive as from the outside, and already the seats were beginning to fill rapidly. I was staring out at all of the people when George nudged me lightly in the side.

"Umm…Jules, where are you going to sit?" he asked awkwardly.

I knew immediately what he meant. Ever since we had first become friends my place was between Fred and George. Clearly George was uncertain that I would be taking my usual spot this evening.

"Next to you," I said simply. I didn't really want to sit next to Fred, especially since he refuses to apologize.

George thought it over for a minute and then smiled broadly.

"Well, let's sit Julie dear," he said, leading me into the front row with the rest of our group.

I sat next to George with Fred, Bill, and Charlie on his other side. Ginny sat to my right with Hermione, Harry and Ron next to her. Percy and Mr. Weasley sat at the end of the row.

No one else was in the box yet except a house elf who was sitting behind Harry. Harry seemed to be talking to it for some reason. I found it odd—people don't normally converse with house elves.

I pulled out my omnioculars and started to test them out by looking out at the crowd. I scanned over all of the excited faces and began to grow excited myself.

Twisting the knobs and buttons I quickly discovered how to replay what had just happened and rewind what I saw. I could also put commentary on in the form of captions. It was through this period of experimentation that I spotted Cedric amongst the crowd.

He was sitting almost directly across from me, but several rows lower. If he hadn't been right in front of me there would have been no way I could have spotted him in the thousands of wizards. He was merely a pin-point in a sea of heads when I tried to find him without the omnioculars.

Staring down at him with interest I took notice that he was obviously just as excited as everyone surrounding him. The grin on his face was full of anxious anticipation. _He really is cute…_

"What are you smiling at?" George asked.

I pulled the omnioculars back down from my eyes, trying to memorize exactly what angle Cedric was sitting at in relation to me.

"These are cool," I said, trying to cover up what I was looking at, "Here, try them."

I handed the omnioculars to George and he put them up to his eyes, peering out at the crowd.

About a minute later he snickered.

"What?" I asked.

He handed them back to me and I looked into the eye piece.

There was Cedric again, still and unmoving. George had used the rewind switch and hit pause.

I looked back at George. He was smirking.

"You like him then?" George asked, keeping his voice down so as to ensure Fred didn't overhear.

I ran my hand through my hair and let out a frustrated sigh. _Stupid George and his investigative skills._

"I don't know," I admitted.

"And Fred?" he questioned.

"Fred's had nearly a year and all he's done is mess with my head," I replied.

"I guess."

"What?" I asked surprised, "You think I should still wait for him?"

George considered me a moment, "No."

"No?"

"I've warned him more than enough times about losing you," George said.

"You have?" I asked a little flattered that George had stood up for me like that.

George rolled his eyes at me.

"No need to get excited, and yes, I have told him that. Of course, he's too stupid to take me seriously," he replied, "Actually, if you dated someone else he may just smarten up."

"George, I'm not going to date someone just to make Fred jealous," I replied.

"No, of course not," he said. He seemed unconvinced, "I'd prefer if it weren't Diggory, but I guess the fact that you'd be using him would make up for dating him."

"George!"

He grinned at me and ruffled my hair affectionately.

"I'm just kidding," he said, "And if you do like him there's no reason not to give it a chance. I know I said I don't like the guy, but Fred's being a jerk and there's no reason for you not to be happy."

"I think you're getting a little carried away," I told him.

George grinned at me and slipped his arm around my shoulders.

I rolled my eyes at him.

"Hey!" he yelled, "Don't you roll your eyes at me young lady!"

George pulled me towards him in a headlock and tousled my hair. I giggled madly and pushed him off of me just as Fred, trying to be discreet, elbowed him in the gut. I scoffed. Jealous of Cedric is one thing, but George? Please.

George rolled his eyes at his brother and turned towards me.

"Let the record show, I am now rooting for Diggory," he told me quietly.

---

Ludo Bagman had stood up, voice booming to welcome to Bulgarian team mascots once the seats had been packed full and the time to begin the match was near. Excitement was at its peak as he stood up and boomed:

"Here are the Bulgarian team mascots!"

The right hand side of the stands roared with applause as they cheered on the Bulgarians.

I gazed out towards where the mascots were making their way onto the pitch. They were creatures I've never seen before. They looked almost human, but there was something odd about them.

"Veela!" I heard Mr. Weasley say.

I immediately recalled the information I had learned about Veela. They weren't human creatures, but they were extraordinarily beautiful. They were capable of controlling men—putting them in some sort of trance.

The Veela began to dance and I immediately noticed the change in the atmosphere. Men and boys throughout the massive pitch glued their eyes on the dancing creatures. I turned to look at George and almost laughed out loud at the sight of him. I swear there was drool coming down from his bottom lip. He looked so entranced by their movements that I got the feeling that he was going to do something very stupid. It was extremely bizarre to watch. I don't think I've ever seen him so focused on anything before.

When the Veela stopped I waved my hand in front of George's face. He snapped back to life and looked in my direction.

"Welcome back Georgie," I said smirking at him.

"I was just, thinking about how all of this isn't really necessary, I mean, come on get on with the game!" he said, trying to cover up for his behaviour, but failing miserably.

I laughed and turned to view the pitch again as Bagman introduced the Ireland mascots.

"Leprechauns!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed brightly.

A huge green and gold comet zoomed into the stadium. A rainbow appeared by the goalposts and a huge shamrock formed in the sky. It flew up over the stands and started pouring gold down onto the many fans.

Looking closely I could see that the shamrock was indeed made up of hundreds of little men with beards. They were throwing gold out to the stands and people had begun to stand up and grab at the falling shiny objects.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Bulgarian Quidditch team!" Bagman exclaimed, introducing all of the players as they rocketed out onto the pitch.

He then introduced the Irish National Quidditch Team as seven green blurs flew out onto the pitch as well.

The game began quickly and Bagman was now announcing at such a speed that I could barely keep up with his words. The Quaffle was being passed around rapidly and I could barely catch a glimpse of it as it was zooming through the air.

I used my omnioculars, but had difficulty even then. While I was attempting to follow each player I ended up missing much of the action.

"Troy Scores!" Bagman roared suddenly and the crowd gave a huge noisy applause.

The scoreboard above the goal posts read Bulgaria-Zero, Ireland-Ten.

Within ten minutes Ireland had brought their lead up to thirty points, but before long Bulgaria was able to score one as well.

The Veela jumped up and started a victory dance. Immediately Mr. Weasley told the boys to plug their ears so as they wouldn't fall under the Veela's spell.

It seemed that the mascots were having their own little match out on the pitch—a dance off. Every time Ireland scored the leprechauns would do a jig in return to the Veela's sultry movements.

George pointed out towards Victor Krum as he went into a great dive, followed closely by the Ireland Seeker. The crowd gasped, having seen the movement.

Krum very suddenly pulled out of the dive while the other player fell to the ground.

"He was feinting," George yelled over the noise of the stadium.

Amazingly, fifteen minutes later Ireland was leading by one hundred and thirty points to ten. It was at this point that a thought entered my mind: Maybe Fred and George's bet isn't as stupid as I thought. I crossed my fingers, hoping the twins' bet prevailed and they hadn't wasted all of their money.

Just then a penalty was given against Bulgaria. The leprechauns immediately soared up into the air and formed the words 'Ha, ha!'

"Can you imagine playing in this madness?" I asked George, and he shook his head vigorously.

The game was becoming nastier with every passing moment. The Veela had managed to put the referee in a sort of trance and at one point the leprechauns formed a rather rude hand gesture in the air. The Veela then turned from the beautiful creatures that they were into ugly scaly, bird-like creatures.

"And _that_ boys, is why you don't go for looks alone!" Mr. Weasley yelled as the men around all made faces of disgust.

The game was paused as Ministry officials ran out to attempt to separate the now fighting mascots.

"This is crazy!" Ginny said from my other side, I nodded in agreement.

The game recommenced shortly, and there was a huge groan from both sides of the crowd. Krum had managed to get hit in the face with a Bludger. His nose looked broken and he was bleeding huge amounts of blood. The referee hadn't seen anything as one of the Veela had just thrown a ball of fire at him, hitting his broom tail.

It was at that point when the Irish Seeker went into a great dive. The Ireland supporters jumped to their feet and cheered their Seeker on, but Krum was on his tail and was catching up, blood still pouring from his nose.

The crowd was going wild as the entire stadium lit up in screams of excitement.

For the second time of the game, the Ireland Seeker crashed to the ground. This time, however, Krum had caught the snitch. The match had ended.

The scoreboard was flashing: Bulgaria-One hundred and Sixty, Ireland- One hundred and Seventy.

It took everyone a few moments to register what had happened, but all at once a huge amount of shouting drowned out Bagman.

"IRELAND WIN! Krum gets the Snitch but Ireland win!" Bagman shouted. "I don't think anyone was expecting that!"

There was a huge celebration from the Ireland supporters, and very quickly it seemed, the Top Box where we were seated was suddenly illuminated. The Irish National team had entered our spot to receive the cup.

The roar of the crowd was deafening as they took the cup, held it into the air and then headed back down to the pitch to do a victory lap.

I turned towards George to congratulate him on his winnings only to find that he wasn't seated next to me anymore.

"Ah yes, I owe you how much?"

I turned around to see the twins grinning at Bagman, their hands outstretched expectantly.

---

Echoing yells, jeers and laughter surrounded us as we made our way back down to our tents. It was clear that no one was going to be getting any sleep any time soon. Not so long as the Ireland supporters were still up and celebrating. So, when we managed to make it back to our camp we all settled into the boys' tent.

We had a celebration of our own, all of us talking, laughing and arguing about the game late into the night.

Everyone was in high-spirits, but the anger from earlier today still held strong between Fred and I. Although we were celebrating with the rest of the group, we did not meet eyes or share a conversation during the period of excitement.

The whole lot of us sat around together for hours until Ginny finally fell asleep at the table and knocked her hot chocolate everywhere. At that point Mr. Weasley suggested it was time to call it a night.

I, along with Hermione and Ginny, made our way back to our smaller tent after bidding the boys goodnight, and despite the loud bangs still going on in the distance, the excitement of the day managed to claim me as I fell into a deep sleep.


	7. The Dark Mark

**A/N:** Once again, I love each and every one of you and your lovely reviews. You really do manage to make my day you guys. Thanks for the support! I hope you enjoy this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER SEVEN ---**

_The Dark Mark_

I had a dream that night filled with terror. I'm not exactly sure what was going on in it, but there were horrific screams and deafening bangs and blasts all around me. Noises of people running and crying filled the air…and it wasn't until I sat up in my bed with a start that I realized I hadn't been dreaming the sounds at all.

I stared into the darkness surrounding me. It sounded as though complete chaos was going on right outside of our tent. My heartbeat started to race as soon as I realized that the terrified screams I had been hearing were a reality.

I jumped out of my bed and felt around for my clothes. I found my jeans and started to pull them on in a desperate hurry.

"Ginny! Hermione! Get up!" I yelled as I pulled on a sweater and pushed my feet into my shoes.

I heard them grumbling from the other side of the tent as I scrambled to find my wand in the darkness.

"Seriously guys, get up!" I called to them.

Just then Mr. Weasley entered the tent sounding frantic and urgent.

"Girls get up now! This is an emergency!"

He held his own wand out, illuminated at the tip and shook Ginny and Hermione awake.

"There's no time to get dressed, follow me!" he yelled, pulling Ginny up and out of her sleeping bag.

My hand met my wand and I picked it up quickly, hurrying to Mr. Weasley's side.

"What's going on?" I asked, gazing at him in the dim light.

He turned to look at me and said very quietly, probably so Ginny and Hermione wouldn't overhear: "Death Eaters."

A shiver ran up my spine and I gripped my wand tightly.

Ginny and Hermione were ready within seconds. The screams had obviously shaken them out of their sleepy state. I know it had worked with me.

Mr. Weasley directed us out of the tent and the three of us took off at a sprint, him following immediately behind us.

Once outside I could see flashes of red and green filling the air to go along with the terrified screams I had been hearing.

The boys were all standing outside of their tent, having already been wakened. They were obviously waiting for instruction.

We quickly joined the group of them just as Bill, Charlie and Percy stepped out of the tent, fully dressed with their sleeves rolled up and their wands ready. They hurried past us, Bill squeezing my shoulder as he went by.

"We're going to help the Ministry," Mr. Weasley said to us, "You lot—get into the woods, and _stick together_. I'll come and fetch you when we've got this sorted out!"

The four of them sprinted off into the distance without another word.

I watched them go, noticing for the first time a group of masked wizards—Death Eaters—moving together. Their wands were pointed straight up, and when I looked upwards I could see four bodies floating above them in the air. I recognized one of them as Mr. Roberts, the campsite manager. The other three I assumed were his family.

I stood there, awe-struck by the disturbing sight as the dark wizards slowly neared.

I was so terrified that I stood, rooted to the spot as Fred grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled her towards the woods, instructing the rest of us to follow.

I didn't even notice as everyone else sprinted off to the cover of the forest, leaving me standing alone and very vulnerable.

My breathing sped up rapidly and my palms began to sweat. It wasn't until I was nearly hit by a spell from one of the Death Eaters that I was able to snap back to reality—and by that time I could see no one from our group. I started to panic, realizing I was now alone amongst all of the madness going on.

Another spell narrowly missed me as I ducked to keep from getting hit by the blast. I stumbled to get up and run to the forest, but I tripped in my state of terror.

As I was struggling to get back to my feet someone grabbed me from behind, causing me to yell out.

"Get off me! Let me go!" I screamed, terrified.

"Juliet! It's ok, it's me."

I turned around abruptly and was met by the worried features of Cedric Diggory.

"Cedric," I said, my voice shaking.

"Are you ok?" he asked, sounding concerned.

I nodded in return, trying desperately not to panic.

"Let's get out of here," he said hurriedly, glancing back at the Death Eaters who were still making their way in our direction.

He took my hand and pulled me towards the wood quickly. We were pushed and shoved by many others who were fleeing the path of the crazed wizards, but we managed to reach the edge of the forest unharmed. Once we had Cedric turned to me.

"What were you doing out there all alone?" he asked, holding onto my arms.

"I lost the Weasleys," I replied, my breath heavy.

"They left without you?" he said sounding appalled.

"They didn't mean to, it just happened," I answered, "Everything's chaotic, it was hard to keep track of us all."

Cedric nodded in agreement and studied me in the dim lighting. He pushed the hair out of my face and let his hand linger on my cheek.

"Are you sure you're ok?" he asked.

"I'm fine," I replied, feeling anything but fine. I suddenly realized that Cedric too was alone, "Where's your Dad?"

"Helping the Ministry," he told me. He let his hand fall back down to his pocket where he gripped his wand.

"Right."

"So I guess it's a good thing I found you—for both of our sakes," he said, "It wouldn't be very safe to be alone at a time like this."

"Yeah," I replied.

"Wow," Cedric said. 

"What?" I asked.

"It's weird seeing you so shaken up," he answered.

I scoffed at him.

"It's weird that you _aren't_ shaken up, look around Ced!"

He smiled weakly at me and pulled me into a hug. I clung to his shoulders and looked out through the gaps in the trees. From there I could see the glowing light emitting from the Death Eaters' wands and the screams could still be heard. Inside the wood things were quieter, but very tense. There were groups of people nearby huddled together and clinging to their families.

"So is this the real deal?" I asked, still being held by Cedric, "Are they actually Death Eaters?"

"Looks like it," Cedric answered, pulling away from me. "Let's go find the trail, maybe we'll be able to track down the rest of your group."

I didn't respond to Cedric, but allowed him to pull me in the direction I assumed would bring us to the trail. It was likely that the others had stuck to it so they would be able to be found by Mr. Weasley later on.

Cedric was leading me by the hand, but I was barely taking into account where we were going. I was sort of entranced. This whole thing seemed somewhat surreal, like I was still dreaming. How could something so fun-filled go so terribly wrong, especially with so many Ministry wizards around? Why would Death Eaters dare make a scene at the biggest wizarding event in the world?

"Why _aren't_ you panicking?" I asked as we trudged through the lantern-lit forest.

We had reached the path when Cedric answered me.

"What good would panicking do?" he asked, still gripping my hand firmly.

I smiled weakly despite myself. Of all the people in the world, I would not have expected to be rescued by Cedric Diggory in my time of need. It's kind of bizarre how much we've been seeing each other lately—even if it is accidental.

The path was littered with cowering wizards. There were so many people waiting for the chaos to die down that I nearly got separated from Cedric several times. Everyone was chattering, some were crying, but no one was screaming any more. There was an eerie vibe running through the wood as everyone stayed quiet, listening for the sounds of the Death Eaters on the other side of the tree line.

We had been walking for at least fifteen minutes—possibly more—when I spotted Fred and George. I tugged on Cedric's arm to get him to stop and pointed my illuminated wand in the direction of the twins.

They were standing just off the path with Ginny between them. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were not there.

I dropped Cedric's hand and the two of us hurried in their direction. My heart was pounding—I hadn't realized how terrified I had been for them.

Fred, George, and Ginny didn't spot the two of us until we were close enough to grab them, and when they did see us they gave a start.

"Julie!" Ginny yelled, running towards me. I hugged her and asked if she was ok. She nodded in return.

Next George enveloped me in a hug.

"Where did you go?" he asked, staring at me with wide-eyes. I could tell he had been worried.

"No where, you're the ones who left," I told him.

"You were right behind us," he said confused.

"I fell behind—Cedric found me," I said, gesturing towards Cedric who was standing behind me awkwardly.

George saw him and nodded, moving away from me. He moved towards Cedric and gave him a slapped him on the back.

"Alright Diggory?" he asked, clearly trying to be friendly. Cedric had just saved his best friend, after all.

"Not bad, and yourself?" Cedric replied.

What George's reply was I don't know, reason being Fred had enveloped me in a hug almost as soon as his brother had stepped away. I was a little shocked by the embrace, mainly because of the fact that we hadn't resolved our feud from the day before.

I didn't say anything, but hugged him back, feeling his body shaking against mine.

"Fred," I started, feeling a little overwhelmed.

"Shh, Julie," he interrupted me, holding me tightly, "I'm sorry."

"What?" I asked. I realized what he was sorry for, but it was the first thing I thought to say in reply.

"I'm sorry about earlier, I was being a git," he replied quietly.

I let out a breathless laugh, "Yeah, you were."

He laughed into my shoulder and straightened up, cupping my face in his hands.

"Don't scare me like that again, ok?" he said, staring at me intently, "Even if I do deserve it. I don't know what I would have done if something had've happened to you…just promise you won't get lost again."

I looked into his worried eyes and felt a surge of emotion. I hate when Fred and I fight. Even if he does confuse the bloody hell out of me he is still my best friend, and it's clear that he does care about me.

"I promise," I replied.

He pulled me close to him again and kissed the top of my head.

"So you're ok?" he asked, ending the hug and holding me at arm's length, surveying me.

"No injuries," I replied.

Fred smiled weakly at me.

"Where's your brother? And Hermione and Harry?" I asked suddenly remembering that they weren't amongst us.

"They got separated too," George replied.

I turned around to face him, Fred dropping his hold on me.

"Did they make it to the forest?" I asked, worried about their well-being.

"They did," Ginny answered, "But where they went from there we don't know."

"So what are we supposed to do?" I questioned, "Just stand here until someone comes to fetch us?"

"Well we're not splitting up if that's what you mean," George answered.

"I'll go look for them," Cedric suggested, speaking up.

"No," I said almost immediately, "No one's leaving alone."

"I can get back easy enough," he told me, "I'll be fine."

"Cedric we should stick together," I told him firmly.

"Julie—"

"No, you shouldn't go."

I turned in surprise to look at Fred when I heard him cut Cedric off. Of all people, Fred would be the last person to encourage Cedric to stay close to our group. I would have expected him to be shoving him back out of the wood by now.

Cedric seemed to notice Fred's odd behaviour toward him, and he agreed to stay because of it.

It was clear to me why Fred told Cedric to stay—it was because of me. If I had needed any more proof that Fred was truly sorry about his behaviour towards me, this was it.

I smiled at him and mouthed: "thank you".

Fred smiled weakly back at me.

Very suddenly the wood all around us erupted in screams. Fred, George, Cedric, Ginny, and I looked around frantically to see what was wrong. Everyone nearby was emitting high-pitched yells of pure terror, and I couldn't figure out why.

It was Cedric who realized what was going on and pointed up at the sky.

The rest of us followed his pointing hand with our eyes. My gaze fell upon a greenish, smoky figure lingering in the sky. It was a skull, and a rather nasty looking one at that and from its hanging mouth a serpent began to flow out. It glittered in the night sky, looking like it was made up of shining green stars. The five of us gaped up at it in horror, but none of us screamed.

Ginny was the first to speak.

"What is that?" she asked, terror dripping from her voice.

Fred, George, Cedric, and I exchanged glances. The boys seemed unsure whether or not to tell her—she might grow even more frightened.

I was the one who spoke up. Ginny's thirteen after all, she's not daft.

"It's the Dark Mark, Ginny," I replied, still staring up at the huge lingering skull situated high above us.

"You mean…" she said softly, clinging onto Fred's arm.

"Yeah," George replied, "_Him_."

---

The five of us had waited what seemed like hours before we crept back out of the wood. The screams had finally died down and we thought perhaps the coast was clear to head back to the campsite. We hadn't seen or heard from Mr. Weasley or any of the other Ministry members yet, but we assumed they would still be busy sorting through all of the mess. So, when the other lingerers began moving back towards their campsites, we opted to go as well.

We had told Cedric to stay with us while he waited for his father to return. There was no sense in us sending him out alone. For all we knew there could still be dark wizards about. If we were going anywhere we had to go as a group.

Thus, when we managed to find our way back to our tents, we pushed Cedric in with the rest of us.

We were immediately met by Charlie, who looked as though he was about to exit the tent to come and fetch us.

"Oh thank Merlin you're alright," he said after running into Ginny on his way out. He stooped down and hugged his sister tightly, surveying her for any injuries.

The rest of us pushed our way into the space, looking around for the others.

Bill and Percy were seated at the table. Bill was holding a sheet to his arm as it was bleeding profusely. Percy was having a similar problem with his nose.

I hurried over to them, wanting to help in any way I could.

"Jules! Fred, George!" Bill exclaimed, looking up from his injured arm, "Where are the others?"

"We lost track of each other," George explained, "Where's Dad?"

"He left when the Dark Mark was conjured," Charlie replied, "He hasn't come back yet."

It was at this point that Charlie noticed Cedric standing awkwardly amongst us.

"Who's this?" he asked, directing his question to the rest of us rather than asking him directly.

"Cedric Diggory," Percy answered awkwardly. His voice was strained as he was having a difficult time stopping the blood rushing from his nose.

"Oh," was all Charlie said.

"Bill, let me help," I said, assisting in dressing Bill's wound.

"Oww," he said as I pulled tightly on the ends of the bed sheet.

"Well you have to put pressure on it otherwise it will never stop bleeding," I said, fussing over his arm.

"I'm going out to look for the others," Charlie told us.

"I'll come with you," Cedric piped up, "I've got to find my dad anyway."

The two of them prepared to leave the tent, but were spared going any farther as Mr. Weasley, Hermione, Harry, and Ron entered the tent only moments later.

"Cedric, your father's not far, he's just headed back to your camp to fetch you," Mr. Weasley said upon entrance, "I suggest you go to him."

Cedric nodded his thanks and met my eyes. I gave him a weak smile and mouthed a _thank you_ to him before he hurried out of the tent and into the night.

"Did you get them, Dad?" Bill asked as I continued to press down on his injured arm, "The person who conjured the Mark?"

"No," Mr. Weasley replied, "We found Barty Crouch's elf holding Harry's wand, but we're none the wiser about who actually conjured the Mark."

"What?" Bill, Charlie, and Percy asked together.

"Harry's wand?" said Fred incredulously.

"_Mr. Crouch's elf?_" Percy added in shock.

I looked towards a dishevelled Harry, Hermione, and Ron as they began to retell the story about what had happened. Apparently they had been very near the person who conjured the Mark, but were unable to make out exactly who it was. It had been a male's voice, but when the Ministry arrived to investigate they found no one around but Crouch's house-elf holding Harry's wand (he had managed to drop it in all of the chaos).

Apparently Mr. Diggory, amongst others, was convinced that the house elf was to blame, but it was clear that there had been someone else out there in the woods who had conjured the Dark Mark. Consequently, Mr. Crouch had let his house-elf go due to her apparent disobedience—an unjust punishment if I do say so myself.

"Well, Mr. Crouch is quite right to get rid of an elf like that!" Percy said, having successfully stopped the bleeding from his nose, "Running away when he expressly told her not to…embarrassing him in front of the whole Ministry…how would that have looked, if she'd been had up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control—"

"She didn't do anything—she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time!" Hermione snapped suddenly, taking us all by surprise. Percy was quite taken aback. Of every one of us Hermione had always been the one who got on best with Percy. They were quite alike after all.

"Hermione, a wizard in Mr. Crouch's position can't afford a house-elf who's going to run amok with a wand!" Percy said pompously.

Hermione looked furious. "She didn't run amok! She just picked it up off the ground!"

The rest of us were silent. Hermione was definitely taking this whole house-elf issue very seriously. I exchanged glances with Fred and George. They sent me identical puzzled looks. Apparently they were just as confused as I was about what any of this had to do with the appearance of the Dark Mark.

"Look, can someone just explain what that skull thing was?" Ron asked impatiently. "It wasn't hurting anyone…why's it such a big deal?"

Fred and George both slapped their foreheads at their brother's idiocy.

"I told you, it's You-Know-Who's symbol, Ron," Hermione explained before the twins managed to point out what a great bloody moron their brother is, "I read about it in _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts_."

I heard Bill chuckle slightly at Hermione, and I rolled my eyes, catching his gaze. We shared a small laugh at Hermione's expense. Why is it she must always announce where she acquires her knowledge?

"It hasn't been seen for thirteen years," Mr. Weasley added quietly, "Of course people panicked…it was almost like seeing You-Know-Who back again."

Bill and I stopped chuckling, and Fred and George fell silent as well, no longer mocking their brother's ignorance. The seriousness in Mr. Weasley's tone was enough to sober all of our attitudes.

"I don't get it," Ron continued, "I mean…it's still only a shape in the sky."

"Ron, You-Know-Who and his followers sent the Dark Mark into the air whenever they killed," Mr. Weasley told him. "The terror it inspired…you have no idea, you're too young. Just picture coming home, and finding the Dark Mark hovering over your house, and knowing what you're about to find inside…" Mr. Weasley paused, wincing at the thought. "Everyone's worst fear…the very worst…"

Everyone fell eerily silent—not even noises from outside of the tent could be heard. The realization of the terror that had just occurred sank in.

Bill stirred, removing my hand and the bed sheet from his arm to check on his wound. "Well, it didn't help us tonight, whoever conjured it. It scared the Death Eaters away the moment they saw it. They all Disapparated before we'd got near enough to unmask any of them. We caught the Robertses before they hit the ground, though. They're having their memories modified right now."

"Death Eaters?" Harry asked, "What are Death Eaters?"

I scoffed. I had forgotten how very little Harry actually knew about the Dark Arts and the wizard he had managed to vanquish so many years ago.

"It's what You-Know-Who's supporters called themselves," Bill told him, "I think we saw what's left of them tonight—the ones who managed to keep themselves out of Azkaban anyway."

"We can't prove it was them, Bill," Mr. Weasley said, "But it probably was."

"Yeah, I bet it was!" Ron spoke suddenly. "Dad, we met Draco Malfoy in the woods, and he as good as told us his dad was one of those nutters in the masks! And we all know the Malfoys were right in with You-Know-Who!"

Harry looked confused. "But what were Voldemort's supporters—"

Everybody flinched, including me. I hated to admit that I, like everyone else, had a fear of that name. I had always avoided saying it, even though I was ashamed of my fear.

"Sorry," Harry said quickly, continuing, "What were You-Know-Who's supporters up to, levitating Muggles? I mean, what was the point?"

Mr. Weasley let out a hollow, eerie laugh.

"The point?" he asked, "Harry, that's their idea of fun. Half the Muggle killings back when You-Know-Who was in power were done for fun. I suppose they had a few drinks tonight and couldn't resist reminding us all that lots of them are still at large. A nice little reunion for them."

A shiver ran up my spine at the thought of such horrific acts actually being considered _fun_. The idea of it was disgusting and disturbing.

Seeing that Bill no longer needed my help with his arm as it had stopped bleeding, I moved over to where the twins were seated on a sofa. I pulled my feet up under me and listened intently as the conversation continued. Fred placed his hand over mine and I held onto it tightly.

"But if they _were_ Death Eaters, why did they Disapparate when they saw the Dark Mark?" Ron asked curiously, "They'd have been pleased to see it, wouldn't they?"

"Use your brains, Ron," Bill said, "If they really were Death Eaters, they worked really hard to keep out of Azkaban when You-Know-Who lost power, and told all sorts of lies about him forcing them to kill and torture people. I bet they'd be even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back. They denied they'd ever been involved with him when he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives…I don't reckon he'd be over-pleased with them, do you?"

Ron considered Bill's argument—he had a point. At least the rest of us, although against You-Know-Who, have never done anything to betray him. I certainly wouldn't want to be one of the followers facing his wrath if he were to return to power. Certainly he would have no mercy.

"So…whoever conjured the Dark Mark…" Hermione started slowly, "were they doing it to show support for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?"

"Your guess is as good as ours, Hermione," Mr. Weasley said, "But I'll tell you this…it was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I'd be very surprised if the person who did it hadn't been a Death Eater once, even if they're not now."

There was a long pause in the conversation where my grip on Fred's hand tightened even more. In such a short period of time all of the carefree joy that had been coursing through the group of us had been wiped away and replaced with blood-curdling terror.

"Listen, it's very late, and if your mother hears what's happened she'll be worried sick. We'll get a few more hours' sleep and then try and get an early Portkey out of here," Mr. Weasley told us.

We all agreed and reluctantly began to ready ourselves for bed once again. Hermione, Ginny, and I did not return to the girl's tent, but opted for sleeping on the floor. None of us were willing to separate ourselves from the others after such a horrific night.

Thus, the three of us girls began setting up our makeshift beds on the floor. We were stopped, however, by Fred and George.

"Take our beds," George told us, "We'll sleep on the floor."

I began to protest, but Fred silenced me, placing a hand over my mouth.

"Julie," he said sternly, "Just do it."

I nodded and let out a sigh, giving Fred a tight hug before he and George arranged two sleeping bags neatly on the floor.

So, with Fred and George's two beds pushed together and Hermione and Ginny sleeping next to me, the lights were put out and I settled in to what was sure to be a sleepless night.


	8. Dumbledore's Announcement

**A/N:** This chapter contains a lot of dialogue from the book, but I hope not to have any more chapters like this one. I was sort of dreading writing this because I knew it would be somewhat dry, but I'm hoping I'll get back into it soon. I'm looking forward to some of the future chapters, I'm just at a loss at how to get there…

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER EIGHT ---**

_Dumbledore's Announcement_

After the scare at the Quidditch World Cup, Percy and Mr. Weasley were scarcely present at the Burrow for the next week. The two of them left the house each morning before anyone else had awoken, and returned well after dark during the night. The incident at the Cup had caused such an uproar that they were needed as often as they could manage at the Ministry to help sort through the mess.

It wasn't only Mr. Weasley and Percy who had matters to deal with since the Quidditch World Cup. Fred and George had called my attention to a problem of their own.

It was pouring rain outside, and the wind was blowing furiously against the outer walls of the Burrow. It was the last day of the summer holiday and everyone was quite gloomy over having to spend it indoors.

Bill, who was playing chess with Ron, was being harassed by his mother over the matter of his hair.

"Well, it is a bit long, dear," Mrs. Weasley said gently, "If you'd just let me—"

"_No_, Mum."

Harry, who was busying himself polishing his broom, snickered at the exchange between Bill and his mother.

Around the rest of the sitting room sat Percy (who had managed to come home from work), Hermione, Ginny, and Charlie.

Fred, George, and I were seated in the far corner of the room, away from everyone else. The three of us had been puzzling over how best to address Ludo Bagman in regards to the twins' winnings from their bet at the World Cup. Apparently Bagman had failed to pay them properly, giving them Leprechaun gold instead of real gold. The mistake was discovered once Fred and George realized that the gold had magically disappeared from their pockets.

"If it was just a mistake he should pay you properly with no problems," I told the two of them. They both had quills in their hands and were bent over a piece of parchment in deep concentration, although neither of them had written anything more than a salutation.

"And if it was intentional?" asked George.

"First let's address it as if it was an accident, and if it turns out otherwise we'll go from there," I suggested.

Fred looked as though he was about to reply when Mrs. Weasley approached our little corner. 

"What are you three up to?" she asked sharply.

"Homework," Fred answered immediately.

"Don't be ridiculous, you're still on holiday," Mrs. Weasley said, her eyebrows rising in suspicion.

"Yeah, we've left it a bit late," George explained.

I could tell Mrs. Weasley didn't believe her sons sudden interest in homework on a holiday, and frankly, if it were me, I wouldn't trust them either.

"You're not by any chance writing up a new _order form_, are you? You wouldn't be thinking of re-starting _Weasley's Wizard Wheezes_, by any chance?" she asked.

"Now, Mum," Fred started, looking up at her with a pained expression on his face, "If the Hogwarts Express crashed tomorrow and George and I died, how would you feel knowing that the last thing we ever heard from you was an unfounded accusation?"

Everyone in the room laughed at Fred's cleverness—including Mrs. Weasley, and the three of us were left alone to attend to business.

---

The next morning arrived far too soon for mine or anyone else's liking. No one wanted to get up out of bed, especially after having spent their last night before school listening to the thunder and rain all night long. If last night had been gloomy, then this morning was downright depressing.

I pulled myself out of bed reluctantly and rubbed my eyes in a furious attempt to waken myself. My trunk had been packed by Mrs. Weasley days earlier so all that was left to do was dress myself.

Hermione and Ginny didn't stir from their sleep until Mr. Weasley called up the staircase to say goodbye to us. Apparently he was already setting off to work…the Ministry must really be a mess.

Once I had pulled myself together enough to be presentable, I headed downstairs to have some breakfast. Ron, Fred, George, and Harry were already seated around the table, and Bill and Charlie entered the kitchen moments after I had, greeting me by creeping up behind me and grabbing my shoulders, causing me to cry out in shock.

"You two are just as bad as the twins," I commented angrily.

"Ahh, I've missed being home," Charlie said, stretching his arms above his head, "I haven't anyone to tease in Romania."

Charlie smirked at me as he sat down at the table. I rolled my eyes at him.

Having no siblings of my own, I had grown to regard Charlie and Bill as my older brothers—after getting over my childhood crush on Bill that is. Ever since I had befriended the twins, Bill and Charlie had made it their duty to catch me up on all of the brotherly love I had missed out on growing up.

Mrs. Weasley, who was bustling around the kitchen, had been discussing Ministry issues with the boys—something about Mad-Eye Moody and rogue dustbins.

"Did someone say Mad-Eye? What's he been up to now?" Bill questioned.

"He says someone tried to break into his house last night," Mrs. Weasley told us.

"Mad-Eye Moody?" George said thoughtfully as he spread marmalade on his toast, "Isn't he that nutter—"

"Your father thinks very highly of Mad-Eye Moody," Mrs. Weasley interrupted sternly.

"Yeah, well, Dad collects plugs, doesn't he?" Fred said quietly as his mother left the room, "Birds of a feather…"

I choked into my orange juice at Fred's joke, much to his delight.

Bill slapped me hard on the back—a gesture that only caused me to spill my juice all over the table in front of me, again, much to Fred's delight.

"Moody was a great wizard in his time," Bill commented, cleaning up the juice with a flick of his wand.

"He's an old friend of Dumbledore's, isn't he?" Charlie added.

"Dumbledore's not what you'd call _normal_, though, is he? I mean, I know he's a genius and everything…" Fred said.

"Who is Mad-Eye?" Harry asked.

I reached for some toast and began to spread marmalade on it as I listened to the others explain the character of Mad-Eye Moody to Harry. I was only vaguely aware of who he was myself.

It wasn't long after breakfast that Mrs. Weasley informed us all that we were leaving to catch the Hogwarts Express. Unfortunately, Mr. Weasley had not managed to get Ministry cars for our journey to the train station, and we had to take Muggle transportation. Needless to say, the taxi drivers were not impressed with having to stuff oversized trunks and caged owls into their vehicles. The fact that a couple of the twins' fireworks went off during the loading process wasn't exactly fun either.

Yesterday's rain was still pounding down hard when we arrived at King's Cross. Bill and Charlie had come along with their mother to see the rest of us off, so we all crossed the border onto Platform nine and three-quarters together.

The Hogwarts Express greeted us as we crossed over into the invisible platform and our ears met the sound of many Hogwarts students saying goodbye to their families.

The rain urged us to move quickly, so once we had lugged our trunks onto the train, we bade a hurried farewell to Bill, Charlie, and Mrs. Weasley.

"I might be seeing you all sooner than you think," Charlie said with a grin as he hugged Ginny goodbye.

I gave him a confused look.

"Why?" Fred asked.

"You'll see," Charlie replied, "Just don't tell Percy I mentioned it…it's 'classified information, until such time as the Ministry sees fit to release it', after all."

"Yeah, I sort of wish I was back at Hogwarts this year," Bill commented as he took me into a hug.

"_Why_?" asked George impatiently. Clearly he wasn't fond of being out of the loop.

"You're going to have an interesting year," Bill replied, viewing George over the top of my head, "I might even get time to come and watch a bit of it…"

"A bit of _what_?" Ron asked, sounding just as irritated as the twins.

Before any of us got to hear an answer, the train whistle blew signalling the students to hurry up and board. Mrs. Weasley wasted no time in ushering us away from Bill and Charlie. Clearly she didn't want to find out this secret just yet.

"Thanks for having us to stay, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione said as we all boarded the train.

Harry and I nodded in agreement.

"Oh, it was my pleasure, dears," she replied sweetly, "I'd invite you for Christmas, but…well, I expect you're all going to want to stay at Hogwarts, what with…one thing and another."

"Mum!" Ron yelled irritably, "What d'you three know that we don't?"

"You'll find out this evening, I expect," Mrs. Weasley told us, "It's going to be very exciting—mind you, I'm very glad they've changed the rules—"

"What rules?" all of us asked simultaneously.

"I'm sure Professor Dumbledore will tell you…now, behave, won't you? _Won't_ you, Fred? And you, George?"

At that moment the train began to move, and in a desperate attempt to find out what is happening at Hogwarts this year, Fred called out to his mother, only to have her smile and wave us off.

Feeling a bit disheartened, Fred, George, and I split from the others to find our compartment.

Upon entering it we found that Katie and Alicia had managed to track us down and were seated comfortably within our space. They jumped up as soon as we entered.

"We heard what happened at the Cup!" Alicia shouted, as Katie mauled me with a tight hug.

"We were so worried!" Katie yelled.

"I'm so glad you're all right!" Alicia said.

Fred and George looked just as shocked as I was to have the two girls fussing over them so profusely.

"Relax, we're fine," I said, pushing Alicia off of me forcefully.

"No one was hurt, were they?" Katie asked with concern as I took a seat next to the rain-streaked window.

"Well, Percy didn't make it, but we feel the loss was minimal," Fred replied as he and George took their seats as well.

"Oh you two are awful," Katie replied with a tone of disgust.

The train ride to Hogwarts seemed to go by quicker than usual. Lee joined our group and the six of us caught up over the happenings of the summer. It was clear that Alicia had filled Katie in on what had gone on during the Ministry party between Cedric and me because the two of them kept eyeing me suspiciously. I was half-dreading our arrival at school because I knew they would tear me apart for information as soon as the boys were a safe distance away.

Thus, when the students of Hogwarts had finally managed to flee into the Great Hall and out of the pouring rain, I opted to sit in between the twins rather than take the spot Alicia was offering between her and Katie. I would rather put off the interrogating questions until later.

Lucky for me, Mrs. Weasley's prediction was correct. After we had finished our dinner, Dumbledore made an announcement that proved to be a suitable distraction for Katie and Alicia, as well as the rest of the entire school…

Dumbledore stood up to give his opening speech, which, as always, consisted of a reminder of the zones of the school that are out-of-bounds and items that should not be in the possession of students (many of which were bound to be inventions of the twins), etc, etc. But it was what he said next that caused such a lovely distraction.

"It is also my painful duty to inform you that the inter-house Quidditch Cup will not take place this year," Dumbledore said calmly.

"_What_?" Harry gasped, looking towards the rest of us (his team) for our response.

Katie and Alicia exchanged horrified glances, while Fred and George mouthed wordlessly up at Dumbledore. I stared up at the professor in shock and disgust.

"Has he gone mad?" I asked.

I waited for an explanation suitable enough to convince me that giving up Quidditch this year was for the best, and Dumbledore continued:

"This is due to an event that will be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy—but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts—"

At that moment, just as I was thinking there was nothing I would take great pleasure in more than playing Quidditch, there was a crash of thunder and the doors to the Great Hall swung open.

There, standing in the doorway, was a quite frightening looking man. I recognized him immediately as Mad-Eye Moody—the man with the rogue dustbins. He had scraggly hair, illuminated by the lightening going on outside, terrifying scars on his face, and one magical eye that stood out in horrid contrast to the rest of his features. The bright blue, magical eye was zooming around in its socket rapidly, as if it wasn't part of his body at all. His other small, beady eye remained still, giving him an altogether horrifying appearance.

Every head in the Great Hall watched him as he slowly made his way up to the professors' table, a loud _clunk_ sounding with every second step he took.

"May I introduce our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher," Dumbledore said brightly as Mad-Eye took his seat amongst the other professors, "Professor Moody."

Dumbledore and Hagrid were the only two people in the entire room to acknowledge Moody with applause. Everyone else seemed too horror-struck and surprised to do much more than gawk at the strange looking man.

George nudged me in the side.

"Good news, Jules," he whispered, "You're no longer the ugliest one here."

I jabbed him forcefully in the gut, causing him to yelp out in pain. No one seemed to take any notice of him, as they were all still staring at Professor Moody.

"As I was saying," Dumbledore said, clearing his throat, "We are to have the honour of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event which has not been held for over a century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year."

There was a pause when everyone recovered from the appearance of Mad-Eye to register what Dumbledore had just said. Then Fred, always the gentlemen, yelled out:

"You're JOKING!"

Nearly everyone laughed at this, the tension in the room forgotten. Dumbledore himself chuckled appreciatively.

"I am _not_ joking, Mr. Weasley," he said, "Though, now you mention it, I did hear an excellent one over the summer about a troll, a hag and a leprechaun who all go into a bar—"

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat loudly, signalling Professor Dumbledore to get back on track.

"I told you Dumbledore's not exactly normal," Fred whispered.

"Oh and you are?" I asked smartly.

He grinned cheekily at me, and then turned to listen to Dumbledore once again.

"Er—but maybe this is not the time…no…" he said. "Where was I? Ah yes, the Triwizard Tournament…well, some of you will not know what this Tournament involves, so I hope those who _do_ know forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely."

Fred and George seemed to take Dumbledore's invitation to pay no attention seriously, as they almost immediately began to whisper to each other. I, being stuck in the middle, had to endure the two of them leaning over me in an attempt to hear each other better. I resisted the urge to smash their heads together, and allowed my eyes to wander over the students of the Great Hall.

As I did so I noticed Cedric seated at the Hufflepuff table, whispering intensely to his surrounding friends. I looked at him thoughtfully, wondering whether or not he would enter the tournament, until Alicia caught on to what I was staring at and nudged Katie in the side.

I recovered quickly, hoping I could still get away with a question-free night. Of course, it was inevitable that the girls would want to know if I had met up with him at the World Cup or if Fred had discovered our growing friendship.

I frowned. Dumbledore was still talking…

"There have been several attempts over the centuries to reinstate the Tournament, none of which have been very successful. However, our own Departments of International Magical Co-operation and Magical Games and Sports have decided the time is ripe for another attempt. We have worked hard over the summer to ensure that, this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger."

_Mortal danger? Definitely not as intriguing as Quidditch is._

"The Heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their short-listed contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place at Halloween," Dumbledore continued, "An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Triwizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money."

"I'm going for it," Fred hissed down the table.

I viewed him sceptically.

"Eager though I know all of you will be to bring the Triwizard Cup to Hogwarts," Dumbledore said, interrupting the chatter of excited students, "the Heads of the participating schools, along with the Ministry of Magic, have agreed to impose an age restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are of age—that is to say, seventeen years or older—will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration."

This announcement caused an uproar amongst many students, as the majority of the school was under the age of seventeen. Fred and George were amongst the furious underage students, and were expressing their anger towards this decision.

Dumbledore had to raise his voice in order to regain order in the hall.

"This is a measure we feel is necessary, given that the Tournament tasks will still be difficult and dangerous, whatever precautions we take, and it is highly unlikely that students below sixth and seventh year will be able to cope with them. I will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion."

I could see Dumbledore's eyes flicker over to where the twins and I were seated. He regarded the boys' angry stares and seemed to direct his next sentence to them…

"I therefore beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen."

The twins' cold stares did not falter, and Dumbledore continued.

"The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving in October, and remaining with us for the greater part of this year. I know that you will all extend every courtesy to our foreign guests while they are with us, and will give your whole-hearted support to the Hogwarts champion when he or she is selected. And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter your lessons tomorrow morning. Bedtime! Chop chop!"

Immediately a wave of students began to make their way toward the door. I, however, was stuck between an angry Fred and George who refused to move until their opinions were heard.

"They can't do that!" George yelled as he stood up and glared at Dumbledore, "We're seventeen in April, why can't we have a shot?"

I tugged on his arm, wanting to go up to bed and attempted to get up from my seat. But with the twins flailing their arms angrily, it was quite dangerous to move. Katie and Alicia had already left with the rest of the students, and I was beginning to regret my decision to sit between the twins.

"They're not stopping me from entering," Fred said sourly as he scowled up at Dumbledore as well. "The champions'll get to do all sorts of stuff you'd never be allowed to do normally. And a thousand Galleons prize money!"

Hermione, ever the stern one, coaxed George, Fred, Ron, and Harry to stop their ranting and join the rest of the students in heading up to bed. I hurried after them, having been left at the table forgotten.

Fred and George immediately began thinking up hair-brained schemes to get them into the Tournament.

"Who's the impartial judge who's going to decide who the champions are?" Harry asked.

"Dunno," Fred replied, "But it's them we'll have to fool. I reckon a couple of drops of Ageing Potion might do it, George…"

I listened in on the conversation with interest. I wasn't going to be of age to enter the Tournament either, having been born in March, but I don't really fancy the idea of possibly getting myself killed. Gryffindors are known for their bravery, but stupidity is a whole other thing.

"Dumbledore knows you're not of age, though," Ron pointed out to his older brothers wisely.

"Yeah, but he's not the one who decides who the champion is, is he?" Fred pointed out, determined to find a loophole in the system. "Sounds to me like once this judge knows who wants to enter, he'll choose the best from each school and never mind how old they are. Dumbledore's trying to stop us giving our names though."

"People have died, though!" Hermione spoke up in a worried tone.

"Yeah," Fred agreed, "But that was years ago, wasn't it? Anyway, where's the fun without a bit of risk? Hey, Ron, what if we find out how to get round Dumbledore? Fancy entering?"

This time it was my turn to speak up and be the rational one.

"Fred, honestly, do you actually think you can best Dumbledore?" I asked, "You said it yourself this morning, the man's a genius!"

Fred surveyed me in interest, obviously surprised that I was siding with Hermione on the matter.

"Ron?" he asked, apparently deciding to ignore me.

"What d'you reckon?" Ron said, directing his question to Harry, "Be cool to enter, wouldn't it? But I s'pose they might want someone older…dunno if we've learnt enough…"

"There," I said, "At least Ron's got some brains. Not like you two."

Fred and George glared at me angrily as we reached the Fat Lady portrait.

"Balderdash," George said bitterly, and the portrait door swung open to reveal the Gryffindor common room.

"You two can be pathetic if you want," I said, "But you know I'm right."

Neither of them replied as they hurried across the room, discussing how they would manage to fool the impartial judge of the Tournament. Apparently I was now in the bad books.

Letting out a sigh, I said goodnight to the others and headed up to my dormitory, hoping the twins would see sense after a good night's sleep.


	9. Missed Opportunities

**A/N:** Ok, I'm kind of excited about this chapter because it's sort of pivotal. There's a mixture of both Fred and Cedric in this one, and kind of a surprise twist at the end. I really want to know what you guys think of this chapter, so make sure to review it at the end. Give me your opinions, I always take them into account.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER NINE ---**

_Missed Opportunities_

The next morning I hauled myself out of bed bright and early in order to head down to breakfast before classes. I would have loved to sleep in and skip breakfast all together, but I find that I am particularly irritable if I don't eat properly. Thus, when Alicia and Katie were ready to get up, I did so as well.

I had nearly forgotten about Dumbledore's announcement about the Triwizard Tournament until Katie, Alicia and I had descended the stairs to the common room. As soon as we entered the room we noticed a lack of red-headed twins. The two of them had gone down to breakfast without waiting for me.

"I guess I'm still in trouble," I muttered.

"They'll get over it soon enough," Katie told me. "You are right, after all. There's no way they'll be able to get any judge to consider them for the Tournament."

"Not if Dumbledore has anything to do with the matter," Alicia added.

I nodded in agreement and followed the two girls out of the common room and into the corridor. I was certain it wouldn't take the boys long to forgive me for what I had said. I was only being rational, after all.

As we began to make our way to the Great Hall I noticed Katie and Alicia exchanging looks between them. I groaned inwardly. I had forgotten that the girls would want to question me about Cedric…

"So, Juliet…" Katie said, confirming my suspicions that they would want to bring it up now.

"Alicia tells me there's something going on between you and Cedric Diggory," she said, trying to sound casual and failing miserably.

I glared at Alicia. I specifically told her not to say anything about the matter.

"Yeah, well, Alicia's a twit," I replied harshly.

"Oh calm down, Julie," Alicia said, "I only told Katie—and she's not going to say anything."

Katie nodded along, promising not to speak a word to anyone.

"Plus, this is kind of big news," Alicia added.

"How on earth is it big news?" I asked irritably.

"Because," Katie said, "This is _Cedric Diggory _we're talking about."

"Thanks for the confirmation, Kate," I snapped, "All this time I thought we were talking about Lee."

The girls rolled their eyes at me.

"You know what I mean," Katie said, "Cedric Diggory is gorgeous, and I'd wager at least eighty percent of the female population would give their left foot to be in your position."

"Well they wouldn't be very attractive with one missing foot now would they?" I said, "I reckon ol' Diggory wouldn't give them a second glance."

Clearly Alicia and Katie could tell that I was stalling. They knew once we reached the Great Hall there would be no discussing this matter, as the boys would all be present. 

"Fine," Katie said firmly, "You don't have to tell us if you like him—"

"But you do have to tell us what happened," Alicia finished.

"You already know what happened," I told her. "You made me tell you when we got back from the party."

"What happened at the Cup?" Alicia clarified.

"And what happened when Fred found out about the two of you?" Katie continued.

"How do you know Fred found out?" I asked.

"Because you're no good at keeping secrets," Alicia said, "It was bound to get out one way or another."

I chuckled at the girls' detective work. Clearly they were not going to let this go until they had gotten the details out of me. Figuring I had been bested by the two of them I let out a sigh and proceeded to tell them what had gone on.

"Well it was Cedric's dad who spilled the news to the twins," I told them, "We met up with the Diggorys on the way to the Cup and he recognized me. He immediately started blabbing about how Cedric was so 'taken with me' at the Ministry party—"

Katie and Alicia giggled at this.

I rolled my eyes at the two of them.

"…naturally, Fred flipped out."

The girls stared at me with wide eyes. 

"What happened?" they asked simultaneously.

"He got angry with me, saying I had no right to be talking to other guys without discussing it with him first," I replied.

Alicia and Katie's mouths dropped open in shock.

"He _said_ that!"

"The _nerve_!"

"I know, trust me, I _know_," I told them, "So anyway Fred was being a total prick the whole day and I didn't speak to him again until the whole Death Eater scare."

The three of us entered the Great Hall and headed towards our table.

"What about Cedric," Katie said, "Did you meet up with him after that?"

I bit my bottom lip.

"Jules?"

"Well, when the chaos began I got separated from the Weasleys," I started.

"And?"

The three of us were now only a few feet away from our usual seats where Fred, George, and Lee were already stuffing their faces full of breakfast.

"And Cedric sort of saved my life," I said hurriedly, taking my seat and filling my plate as quickly as I could.

Katie and Alicia sat down on either side of me and stared at me in awe.

"That's all you're going to tell us?" Alicia asked.

I gave her a sideways glance.

"Not now," I muttered.

The three of us pushed aside the matter for later, and I grinned at the boys.

"Good morning," I said cheerily.

Fred and George (and Lee, too, in fact) glared at me.

"Did you hear something guys?" George asked, looking back and forth at Fred and Lee.

"Nope," the two of them answered, shaking their heads.

I rolled my eyes at them, wondering how long they were going to keep up the angry act.

---

The boys ignored me for the remainder of breakfast, and all through our morning classes. They didn't speak to me at lunch either.

They were really pulling out all of the stops, as I was partnered with Fred for our afternoon potions class. He spent the entire time miming everything he wanted me to do, but refused to utter a word to me. I could tell the entire thing wasn't serious. If any of them were really mad they wouldn't be having so much fun with it.

It wasn't until our last class of the day that Fred and George decided the game had run its course. We were all seated in Defence Against the Dark Arts, and they simply couldn't help but express their excitement over having Mad-Eye Moody as our teacher.

Personally, the man scares me…a lot. That man's lessons are even more horrifying than his appearance. And that's saying something. I think what ultimately turned me off of him was his habit of barking 'CONSTANT VIGILANCE' at random intervals during the class. 

The boys all thought he was brilliant, of course. They sat through class clinging on to every word he spoke—an extraordinary occurrence for the three of them—and when we were dismissed they exchanged animated high-fives to express their enthusiasm.

So, by the time dinner had rolled around, Fred, George, and Lee were back to their usual boisterous selves, chatting with us girls animatedly as usual. Of course, they mostly wanted to talk about the Triwizard Tournament and methods in which to fool the judge, but it was good to have them back to normal nonetheless.

"So, tell us what else happened," Katie whispered as the six of us walked back up to the common room that night after dinner.

I looked at the boys. They were ahead of us a few paces and were talking loudly about Aging potions. Thinking the coast was clear I turned to the girls.

"Well like I said, I got left behind," I muttered, trying to keep quiet.

"Right," Alicia replied.

"So I was right out in the open, and these Death Eaters were coming in my direction," I said, "And I was sort of rooted to the spot—you know, transfixed—and it wasn't until I was nearly hit by a curse that I snapped out of it."

The two of them urged me to continue. I smirked. I kind of liked having them hang on to my every word…and I was starting to believe this thing with Cedric kind of _is_ big news.

"So I ducked to avoid being hit, and then I couldn't stand back up, and someone grabs me from behind," I continued.

"Cedric?" the two asked in unison.

I nodded. "He pulled me back up and led me to the forest—"

"By the hand?"

"—by the hand," I confirmed, and the girls clapped their hands together excitedly, "And when we reached the wood he asked if I was all right. Then he hugged me and we both tracked down Fred, George, and Ginny."

"You brought him to Fred?" Katie asked, wincing.

"Yeah," I replied, "And by that point Fred had obviously realized what a dunce he is and managed to talk to Cedric like he was an actual human being."

Alicia placed a hand on her chest, "Oh, Jules, you are so lucky!"

I rolled my eyes at her but chuckled nonetheless.

The girls were giggling madly as the group of us made our way to Gryffindor tower, and it was because of their inability to control themselves that I almost failed to notice Cedric coming towards us on the opposite side of the corridor.

Alicia spotted him first, throwing her arm out ungracefully and pointing directly at him.

"There he is, Julie!" she practically yelled, causing Katie to wrench her arm down in an attempt to teach her discretion.

Cedric quite clearly noticed Alicia's call of attention to him and he approached us.

My eyes widened in embarrassment as the boys turned around to see what was going on. I immediately noticed Fred's features sink into a frown. George looked at me with interest, while Lee looked indifferent. Katie and Alicia were once again giggling madly.

"Good evening, girls," Cedric greeted as he stopped next to us. I hadn't realized that our entire group had halted in the middle of the corridor.

I tried very hard to keep my face from flushing up and greeted him as casually as I could, "Hi, Cedric."

He grinned at me and Katie spat out an excuse about needing to finish unpacking as she hauled away our friend. If anything this only increased my embarrassment. I looked towards my group of friends as the five of them began to continue towards Gryffindor. Fred shot me one last thoughtful look before following the others away from us.

Cedric was the first to break the awkward silence that followed.

"So, any particular reason Alicia was pointing at me and yelling my name?" Cedric asked, grinning cheekily.

I covered my face with my hand, wincing in painful memory of Alicia's flailing arms.

"She's insane?" I said. Cedric laughed.

"Or the three of you were talking about me," he replied, moving to lean up against a window ledge nearby.

I moved next to him, feeling butterflies build in my stomach. I envied Cedric's ability to play it cool. I also cursed Alicia and Katie for getting me so worked up over the boy. Up until now I had been fine in his presence. Now I was a jittery mess.

"So what exactly were you girls talking about?" he asked.

I let out a sigh, "Well you know how girls are. Leesh let it slip to Katie that you and I danced together at the Ministry party. I've been getting interrogated ever since."

Cedric chuckled, "So what did you tell them?"

"Well…Mainly a retelling of the fact that you swooped out of nowhere to save my life." I grinned at him, feeling incredibly stupid, wondering why on earth I was sharing this with him.

Cedric flushed, "I wouldn't say I saved your life—I was just helping you out."

I looked at him seriously, "You saved my life. And I never fully thanked you for it."

Cedric turned toward me, his hazel eyes staring into mine.

"So…thank you," I said awkwardly.

Cedric smiled at me brightly.

"You're welcome," he said.

I felt myself blush as he took my hand in his and began to lead me away from the window.

"I would hate to give you girls more to gossip about," he told me, "So I think it would be in my best interest to bring you back to your common room."

"The fact that you're holding my hand will be enough gossip for the two of those girls," I told him, silently hoping he wouldn't take it as a signal to drop my hand.

He smirked at me, and gripped my hand even tighter…again causing me to blush profusely. Damn those girls and their ability to turn me into a giggling fool.

"Are you planning on entering the Tournament?" I asked after several minutes of silence.

"Yeah, I am, actually," he replied. I could see a sparkle of excitement in his eyes, "You?"

I shook my head, "Not of age."

"Just as well. I can't afford to be saving your life all of the time now, can I?"

I scoffed at him in mock anger and he laughed as we neared our destination.

"Alright, now that I've returned you safely to your tower, I think I should be getting back to my own," Cedric told me. "You're not the only one with friends who gossip."

"Really?" I asked with a smirk.

"You've got the seventh year Hufflepuffs chattering about you almost unceasingly," he told me.

"Then you better get going," I agreed, attempting to remove my hand from his.

He resisted, and instead, lifted my hand up and kissed the back of it softly.

"Goodnight Juliet."

With that he gave me one last charming smile and hurried off towards Hufflepuff, leaving me feeling positively giddy.

I took a deep breath once he was out of sight and tried to regain my composure. I shook off the jittery feeling I had developed in my stomach and tried to calm my nerves.

"Balderdash," I said to the waiting Fat Lady portrait, and stepped into the common room.

I was met by the turning heads of my five best mates whom were obviously waiting for my return. Katie and Alicia were looking excited—clearly wanting a play-by-play of everything that had happened. Fred was looking strangely determined, and George and Lee were trying to signal something to me with varying hand gestures from behind Fred's head. Their arms were flailing back and forth, pointing vigorously at Fred and then back at me.

I didn't get much time to decipher their code, because nearly as soon as I had made it to the centre of the common room, Fred stood up and ushered me back out the portrait door.

"What is it?" I asked as he gently pushed me back out the way I had come.

"I want to talk to you," he said calmly.

"Oh, alright," I said feeling a bit confused and nervous. 

The two of us walked in silence for a few minutes before Fred stopped walking and turned to me. He looked serious, like he had something important to say.

"Are you all right?" I asked.

He nodded, "Juliet…"

I looked at him expectantly.

"Ok. I don't know what's going on between you and Diggory—"

I opened my mouth to say something, but Fred hushed me.

"I _know_ it's none of my business," he continued, "But at the same time, I kind of need to know."

"Know _what_, exactly?" I asked.

"If you—If you like…him."

I stared at Fred silently, trying to figure out what was going on. He was confusing me to say the least.

"What does it matter?" I questioned. I didn't raise my voice, because unlike last time Cedric had been brought up, Fred didn't seem to be accusing me of anything. He seemed—upset.

"Because," he said quietly, his eyes on the floor beneath us, "Because…I thought you liked…me."

I stared at him in disbelief. For an entire year Fred had avoided talking to me about our relationship, and now, here it was. Right in front of me. And it couldn't have come at a worse time. Sure, I still have feelings for Fred, but I was also beginning to like Cedric—of course it was nothing compared to Fred—I _love_ Fred…

"I do," I spat out, causing him to meet my eyes.

"And Diggory?" he asked.

"Him too."

At this he began to look a little hurt.

"Why?" he questioned.

"I don't think I really want to go into why," I told him.

"Why do you like him if you already like me?" Fred clarified, and I suddenly understood. He didn't care that it was Cedric Diggory, he cared that it wasn't him.

"Because I waited for you for an entire year," I told him, sadness flowing over me.

I began to feel tears welling up in my eyes. Fred must have noticed them too because he pulled me into a hug.

"I was an arse, wasn't I?" he asked, his face buried in my hair.

"To say the least," I replied, wiping my tears on my sleeve.

Fred pulled away from me and before I knew what was happening he had pressed his lips to mine. It was a gentle kiss, and it only lasted a moment before he pulled away again.

"Listen, Julie," he said softly as I tried desperately to regain my composure. My mind was swimming. Just ten minutes ago I was ecstatic over my conversation with Cedric—and now all I wanted was for Fred to kiss me again.

My heart was pounding hard against my chest as held my gaze.

"I know I don't deserve you," he said, "I know I haven't been the greatest friend—and I certainly haven't displayed boyfriend material…but I just had to tell you before it was too late…"

I stared at him wide-eyed, waiting for him to continue. My heart was racing. Could this really be it? After all of this time could he actually finally be ready to tell me the truth about how he feels? I was almost bursting with anticipation and excitement. It didn't matter if I had a stupid crush on Cedric—if Fred was willing to smarten up and have a real relationship with me I was all for it.

His eyes flickered away from mine, looking at something down the corridor.

"Tell me what, Fred?" I urged, trying to catch his eye once again. We were this close, and I didn't want to let him back out of it.

His eyes snapped back to mine suddenly.

"Fred?" I asked.

He opened his mouth to speak, a small smile growing on his lips.

"Angelina," he said with a smirk.

I screwed up my face in confusion.

"What?" I asked, pulling away from him.

He nodded his head towards the end of the corridor. I turned, following his gaze.

There, making her way towards the Fat Lady portrait—making her way towards us—was Angelina Johnson.

She must have spotted us because she suddenly broke out into a sprint, running towards us with all of the strength her long legs could muster. Neither Fred nor I even had the time to speak before she had flung herself onto us.

"Ange—" I managed to gasp out.

"Juliet! Fred! Oh it's been too long!" she said, enveloping me in a hug.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" I asked, shocked at the prospect of seeing her again after almost two years.

"I heard about the Triwizard Tournament," she said excitedly, throwing herself on to Fred next. I cringed in anger when I saw her place a kiss on his cheek, "And I didn't want to miss my opportunity to enter!"

I stood gaping at her in shock, unable to say anything in reply.

Fred, on the other hand, looked positively ecstatic. He was grinning widely as he greeted Angelina back to Hogwarts. I couldn't even register what they were saying. I was still confused about what had just happened. I was certain Fred was just about to tell me…that he loved me…before Angelina showed up that is.

"I'll meet you guys in the common room," Angelina said as she gave Fred one last hug and took off in the direction of the Fat Lady portrait.

"The password's Balderdash!" Fred yelled after her, and she waved back to him in thanks.

I watched her go, staring after her with a mixture of anger, confusion, and unexplained hatred toward my friend.

"Well that was unexpected," Fred commented cheerily.

I snapped back to reality, turning towards Fred quickly. 

"So, you were saying?" I asked, determined to get the truth out of him.

He smiled at me broadly, "Oh right, I'd forgotten."

"Well, it doesn't look like there will be any more interruptions," I spat out hurriedly, "So, feel free to continue."

Fred grinned at me again before wrapping his arm around my shoulders.

"I think it can wait for one more night," he told me, "We'd better get back to the common room before we miss out on any of the excitement.

"No, Fred, seriously, what were you saying?" I pushed.

"Merlin you're eager," he commented, "Come now, Ange won't take to it kindly if we miss out on her reunion party."

I allowed Fred to lead me back to the common room, feeling as though I had had the wind knocked out of me. I felt my spirits sink.

If Fred had been waiting for the opportune moment to tell me the truth about his feelings…and to ultimately stop me from developing a relationship with Cedric…he had just missed it.

"I think everyone'll be glad to have her back, don't you think Jules?"

My jaw clenched. In my case, Fred's prediction couldn't have been more wrong.

---

**A/N:** This chapter depicts a side of Juliet that we really haven't seen yet. As I'm reading it over she seems really unlike herself, but I think it's natural. The boys have her confused to say the least.

I hope no one hates Juliet for flipping so quickly from Fred to Cedric and back to Fred, but I was trying to be realistic. Juliet is in love with Fred, so even if she is trying to get over him by allowing herself to have feelings for Cedric, she's not going to forget about Fred immediately. 

At the beginning of _Strange Things Come in Threes_ I introduced the idea of Angelina having moved away. I had planned from the beginning to introduce her into the story at this point…you can let me know what you think. 

Are we all right with the return of Angelina? Is everyone ok with the idea of Juliet and Cedric? Reviews would be appreciated!


	10. Public Displays of Affection

**A/N:** So, it seems most of you are fine with the idea of Juliet and Cedric, and I'm glad to see everyone enjoyed the twist at the end of the last chapter. I'm also highly aware that everyone wants Julie to end up with Fred in the end, and I urge you not to worry. This is still a Fred/Juliet story, even if Juliet does turn to Cedric for a while.

In all honestly I love writing about Cedric right now. I was never much of a fan while first reading the Harry Potter books, but I have officially become one. I apologize to any of you who aren't fans of Cedric, but there probably will be a fair bit of him in turning up in this story. Have no fear though; Fred is still ultimately my focus.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER TEN --**

_Public Displays of Affection_

The next month progressed rather painfully for me in concern to Fred. Despite the proximity he had come to professing his love for me on the first day of term, he had never again expressed any interest in starting up our conversation again. He seemed far too interested in entertaining Angelina as she once again got settled into life at Hogwarts.

I tried very hard not to let Fred's attention to Angelina bother me. I knew the two of them had been close before Angelina had moved away…not as close as me and Fred, or me and Angelina for that matter…but I tried to let them catch up on their friendship nonetheless. This proved extremely difficult. Despite my efforts I remained highly jealous of every hug they exchanged, or any flirtatious behaviour I witnessed. I tried to tell myself it was nothing, but I knew better.

I had begun to foresee a relationship between the two of them and I was strongly irked by the prospect. It took almost all of my energy not to confront the two of them, but I knew it was best for me to leave it be.

I had spoken with Katie, Alicia, and George on the matter (all separately so as to assure they gave me their unbiased opinions), and all three of them had agreed that Fred had officially missed his chance. It seems my friends all agreed that I should no longer bother myself with thoughts about my relationship with Fred. In addition, every one of them believed Cedric would be a worthwhile way to get my mind off of him. With each passing day I was beginning to agree with them more and more.

Although I had developed a crush on Cedric, I hadn't made any decision about whether or not I would be willing to move our relationship forward. I hadn't been spending too much time with him over the past month, but we had become good friends. I sensed he knew I was a bit uncomfortable in my situation concerning both him and Fred, and he had been very respectful towards me, even though I strongly suspected he liked me more than just a friend.

To clear my mind of the confusion that swirled around in my brain, I had decided to take a walk with Lee one night after dinner. He was the only one of our friends whom I hadn't told what was going on between me, Fred, and Cedric. In fact, I think even if I _had_ told him, he wouldn't have been interested. The fact that he didn't question me about my love life did wonders for me in an effort to avoid my swarming thoughts.

As we were walking back from the kitchens Lee and I noticed a large huddle of students in the Entrance Hall. Stopping in interest, we decided to see what was going on.

As the students filtered out of the way we noticed a bulletin had been placed on the wall regarding the Triwizard Tournament. Lee and I looked at each other in excitement, and then approached the board and surveyed it in interest.

Lee shoved pastries into his mouth as I read:

_TRIWIZARD TOURNAMENT_

_The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving at 6 o'clock on Friday 30__th__ of October. Lessons will end half an hour early. _

_Students will return their bags and books to their dormitories and assemble in front of the castle to greet our guests before the Welcoming Feast._

"Thas omfy amf fweek afway!" Lee exclaimed, his mouth spewing crumbs all over the front of his robes.

"Indeed," I said, eyeing him in disgust. Lee's total lack of embarrassment and apparent inability to act civilized has always amazed me.

Lee swallowed hard and wiped his face distractedly with his hand.

"We had better go tell Fred and George," he said excitedly.

"Why?" I asked.

"They'll want to know how much time they have to perfect their ageing potion," he explained.

I rolled my eyes at him.

"Do you honestly think those two boneheads have even the slightest chance of making it into the Tournament?"

Lee shrugged, "Sure."

I eyed him sceptically.

"You really are just as stupid as they are," I concluded.

The next week passed by rapidly with the entire school nearly bursting with anticipation over the arrival of our guests. The teachers were busy tidying every nook and cranny of the old castle to ensure the place was spotless. Even each individual painting was scrubbed—much to the subjects' dismay. Every student in Hogwarts was beginning to feel the excitement build, even those who were going to be mere spectators of the Tournament. The enthusiasm was nearly overwhelming.

Fred and George had been getting anxious with their plans to sabotage the legitimacy of the judgment of the would-be contestants. They had begged Professor McGonagall to tell them how the champions were to be chosen, but she refused to speak one word about the subject. The twins' chances were looking slimmer by the moment…but their determination had not faltered.

When the thirtieth of October rolled around the Great Hall had been decorated fantastically in order to welcome our guests. Silk banners hung from every one of the walls, each representing a Hogwarts house. The most massive of the banners was one above the teacher's table of the Hogwarts coat of arms.

When classes had finished for the day the entire school body hurried out anxiously to await the arrival of the students of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang schools.

I followed a happily chattering Katie and Alicia outside to the front of the castle. The evening air was chilly and I could see my breath as I hurried alongside the two girls.

"Do you think there'll be any good looking boys from Durmstrang?" Alicia asked, sounding hopeful. We had heard the Durmstrang school was strictly a boy-only facility.

I snorted at her and rolled my eyes in reply.

"What?" Alicia asked defensively, "Not everyone has their own personal Cedric Diggory to distract them on a daily basis do they? Is it so bad to hope for the arrival of some eye-candy for the rest of us?"

Katie chortled at Alicia, and I glared at her in disgust. How many times do I have to remind her that Cedric and I are not an item?

"I thought you were still hung up on George?" Katie asked.

"Well that isn't getting very far now is it?" Alicia pointed out sadly.

"Maybe it would if you actually spoke to him about your feelings like a normal human being," I told her.

"Oh like you're one to talk, Juliet," Alicia snapped, "You're the one who avoids confrontation at all costs."

"Are you referring to Fred or Cedric?" I asked, "…Actually, it doesn't matter, because in either case you're wrong."

"How so?" Katie questioned, seemingly interested.

"As you may remember, it was _Fred_ who refused to confront _me_ about his feelings for the past year—he even failed to do so when the opportunity was shining brightly in front of his face. In the case of Cedric…well there's no need to confront him because he already knows how I feel."

"And that is?" Alicia pushed. I hadn't ever truly admitted to either of the girls that I did have feelings for Cedric.

"Confused," I replied, "Cedric knows that I'm in a mucked up situation with my feelings for Fred."

Katie and Alicia looked as though they were going to protest that there was nothing mucked up about my relationship with Fred, but I held up a hand to stop them. I had already heard their speech about Fred having missed his chance and I wasn't in the mood to listen to them drone on once again about how I should simply forget about him altogether. They must think I'm stupid. If I were at all capable of forgetting him point blank I would have done it by now.

"Look, we've discussed this enough to last a lifetime," I told them, "Let's just give it a rest for one night, all right?"

The girls grudgingly agreed as the three of us were joined by Fred, George, Lee, and Angelina.

"There you girls are!" George exclaimed, throwing his arm around my shoulders, "We thought we'd lost you."

"Pity you tracked us down," Katie said, readjusting her scarf to fight off the cold air.

"You'd better tuck that nasty attitude away before the company gets here," Lee advised.

"Yes, you wouldn't want the Durmstrang lads thinking you're a bitter old hag, Katie-Kate," George agreed, "They'll find out eventually, but you'll want to make a good first impression."

George ducked to avoid Katie's fist as she threw a punch in his direction, and everyone burst into laughter as she accidentally hit a young Hufflepuff boy instead.

"Oh, sorry," Katie muttered half-heartedly, still fuming at George's joke.

The boy seemed more shocked than wounded but hurried away quickly with a scowl on his freckled face.

The lot of us roared with laughter as the boy ran through the crowd of students and out of sight.

"Nice one Kates," Alicia said, pounding her on the back as she rolled her eyes.

I turned to share a laugh with Fred and George and stopped dead in my movements. I felt my breath catch in my throat as I stared at the sight in front of me. There, squashed between George and Lee, amongst the steadily growing crowd of anxious students, were Fred and Angelina—_holding hands_.

The amusement I had felt previously suddenly evaporated and a scowl made its way onto my features. I was suddenly extraordinarily jealous and angered beyond belief. Despite having predicted the development of a relationship between Fred and Angelina, I was still unprepared for something like this…and so soon! How could he be in love with me to the point where he didn't want me to even _speak_ to another male to holding someone else's hand a month later?!

I wrenched my gaze away from the two of them. My mind must be playing tricks on me. I'm positive that last month he was going to tell me he loves me. He can't possibly be holding her hand now.

I snapped my head back in their direction. But no—there it is, right in front of me—that horrible mutual display of affection.

My insides were simply boiling with rage towards Fred as I glared at the two of them. Neither of them seemed to notice me in the slightest as they laughed along with the rest of the group.

_That settles it; if he's moving on then so am I._

Another burst of roaring laughter coursed through the six others in the group. Apparently I had missed another hilarious development whilst I was staring angrily at Fred and Angelina.

I whipped around to see what it was that everyone had found so amusing and I instantly felt my stomach turn over.

The freckled-faced Hufflepuff boy whom Katie had punched was making his way back towards us, followed closely by Cedric Diggory.

It seems the little runt had gone to find a law enforcer to deal with the troublemaker whom had hit him up the side of the head—apparently he had chosen his house Prefect to take care of the matter. Cedric looked exasperated as he approached us, but his expression lightened as he neared enough to recognize us.

"That one," the boy said, pointing angrily towards his assaulter.

"Ah, Miss Bell, I hear you've been causing trouble," Cedric said calmly. He surveyed the lot of us with amusement. It was clear he wasn't about to take the kid's claim too seriously.

"I wouldn't call it trouble," Katie replied.

Everyone around me was surveying the exchange in interest—Fred, George, Lee, and Alicia were still giggling madly. Angelina seemed to be too absorbed in the thought of holding Fred's hand to find anything amusing, and I was attempting to bury my jealousy.

"You punched me in the head!" the boy protested.

"Oh, sod off you little twit," Katie said angrily, "I said I was sorry."

Everyone busted into laughter once again, save for me. I was torn between wanting to punch Angelina in the gut and becoming entranced by Cedric's almost too-beautiful smile.

"Jacob, why don't you go and find your friends," Cedric suggested, joining in on the laughter.

"You aren't going to do anything?" he asked incredulously.

"You heard her, she's sorry," Cedric replied, shooing Jacob away.

The boy stormed away angrily and disappeared into the crowd.

"Some Prefect you are," Lee commented sarcastically.

"Jacob's a regular," Cedric explained, "He comes running to me at least once every day with some problem or another."

Cedric smirked as he told his story and I stared at him thoughtfully. He really is terribly attractive.

I looked back at Fred. He was still holding Angelina's hand, paying absolutely no attention to the rest of us. She was staring up at him with a sickeningly love-struck look on her face.

I bit my bottom lip and clenched my fists, attempting to conceal my anger.

Alicia nudged me in the side.

I gave a start and turned, jerking my head towards her suddenly.

"What?" I asked rather harshly.

"You're standing there like an idiot," she pointed out," And Cedric is staring."

I turned my head rapidly and saw that she was right. Cedric was, indeed, staring at me. It was as if he were waiting for me to reply to an unanswered question.

I smiled awkwardly at him.

"Hi," I said, my face flushing with embarrassment.

He grinned back at me knowingly and motioned for me to come closer. I took another fleeting glance at the Angelina-occupied Fred and stepped forward to Cedric's side.

"You all right?" he asked me, an amused smirk plastered on his handsome face.

"Fine, why?" I replied, trying to sound as casual as possible.

He didn't answer, but grinned widely at me.

"Walk with me?"

He held his arm out for me and I took it almost immediately. He began to lead me away from my friends through the thick crowd of students. I felt a weight lift from my chest as we distanced ourselves from the others—it was a relief to get away from Fred.

Cedric pulled me through the bodies to the front of the crowd and I bit down on my lip nervously. The more I had allowed myself to begin to like Cedric, the more anxious I had grown whenever I was around him. I suppose it's a good thing…it gives me a distraction from Fred's growing relationship with Angelina.

"So, any reason you've taken me away from my friends?" I asked, trying to calm my nerves.

"Well, I haven't talked to you in a while," he said, "I figured now was as good a time as any—you didn't seem too comfortable around Fred and Angelina."

I looked up at him in surprise.

"I…I…how—"

He smirked at me, "I'm good at reading people."

I let out a laugh, embarrassed that he had caught on to my thoughts.

Awkward silence passed between us and I let out a sigh.

"Can I ask you something?"

Cedric nodded and peered at me in interest, "Of course."

"Why don't you ever ask me about my relationship with Fred?"

He gave me a half-smile before answering, "It's not really any of my business, is it?"

I felt myself smile again at his response and butterflies began to fill my stomach as he smiled back.

"Well…" I started, feeling my nerves beginning to act up again, "It kind of _is_ your business."

"How so?"

"Well, if you like me—"

"Wait, like you?" Cedric interrupted, "who said anything about me liking you?"

I felt a surge of panic course through my veins, but I was reassured when he shot me a playful grin to prove he had only been joking.

I forced out a nervous laugh before continuing.

"I just mean, if you _do_ like me, isn't it sort of your business to know what's going on between Fred and I?" I asked.

He smirked at me and removed his arm from mine. Instead he placed it around my shoulders, pulling me towards him. He bent his head to my ear, whispering, "I know more than you think I do."

I felt tingles run up my spine as his breath hit my neck, but he pulled away, immediately resuming his more casual stance.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Let's just say Alicia has a hard time keeping her mouth closed," he replied with his trademark gorgeous smirk.

I scoffed at him, "I can't believe you. You charmed her into giving you details!"

"I did not!" he said defensively, "All I did was ask a question."

"Well I've got news for you Diggory," I said, "All you have to do is smile to get a girl to say what you want."

"Really?" he asked, eyeing me suggestively.

I rolled my eyes, "It doesn't work on _me_."

"I know," he replied, grinning again as he tightened his grip around my shoulders, "That's why I like you."

I looked up at him questioningly.

"Why on earth would I go for one of the girls who throw themselves at me every chance they get?" he asked quietly, and as he did I noticed a group of younger Ravenclaw girls eyeing him longingly from a few feet away. I smirked.

"I guess I understand," I replied, trying not to get flustered over the fact that he had just admitted to fancying me, "But what did you ask Alicia?"

He bit his bottom lip and I saw his cheeks flush slightly pink.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing really," he replied, "I just wanted to know if you were at all interested in me. It was her who dived into the whole hour-long story of what has been going on between you and Fred."

He looked extremely embarrassed now, as if he were sorry he had accidentally acquired the knowledge.

I picked through my thoughts for a few silent moments before replying.

"Well don't worry about it," I said, "I think anything that Fred and I may have had going has officially run dry."

"Well I suppose that's good news," he replied cautiously, "But that's not really what I was concerned about…"

I glared up at him, "If you want me to admit to fancying you then you've gone mad Diggory. Must I remind you we're still house enemies?"

"Oh that's a load of rubbish," Cedric said with a smile, "We both know Slytherin's the real enemy. Plus, we're not playing Quidditch this year, which means we're not competing."

I bit down on my bottom lip, knowing I had been defeated. The truth was, when the Triwizard Tournament began we'd be on the same side cheering for the Hogwarts champion.

Fortunately, I was saved from having to reply to Cedric's implication about wanting to know how I feel about him. Just before he was about to press me for information a gasp ran through the crowd around us.

I turned my head to see where everyone was staring and caught sight of a giant horse-drawn carriage moving towards the castle from over top of the darkness of the Forbidden Forest. The horses were huge themselves, each about the size of a full-grown elephant. The sight was unbelievable, and students squealed and cheered with delight all around me.

I didn't get much time to take in any details of the carriage, because as it came to an ungraceful landing, Cedric pulled me back from the front of the crowd to avoid getting hit by the rowdy horses and swinging carriage doors.

From the carriage emerged the largest woman I have ever seen. She must have at least been the height of Hagrid, although less bulky. She was intimidating in size, and students stood on their tip-toes to get a better look at her.

Behind Madame Maxime (as Dumbledore introduced her to be) emerged about a dozen or so students all dressed in silken robes. I immediately felt I was not going to like these French students. They seemed to hold themselves with a snooty sort of air. I glanced at Cedric and reminded myself that I could be wrong—I had been completely off with my first impression of _him_.

As the Beauxbatons students began to make their way into the Great Hall to get themselves warmed, the chatter of students began to start up again. Everyone was now greatly anticipating the Durmstrang arrival, and many were glancing up at the sky hopefully. I was beginning to shiver with the cold air.

"Cold?" Cedric asked, smiling down at me fondly.

"What was your first clue?" I asked as I wrapped my arms around myself.

Cedric chuckled and pulled me against his body tightly, attempting to keep me warm. I half-expected him to ask me again how I felt about him, and was relieved when he kept quiet. Even though I had made the decision to move on from Fred I was still hesitant about finalizing my feelings for Cedric. Was it really something I wanted to do?

It wasn't until Lee, from somewhere in the thick crowd, yelled out that he could see something out on the lake, that there was any sign of the Durmstrang arrival. There's was even more spectacular than the Beauxbatons', as they arrived via ship—a ship that actually came up from _under_ the water.

The talk of the crowd changed drastically from the magically appearing ship to the fact that Viktor Krum of the Bulgarian Quidditch team was among the students of the Durmstrang crew. A murmur of excitement ran through the crowd as Krum passed with his Headmaster (Professor Karakoff) and into the Great Hall.

"Well that was unexpected," Cedric commented as a rush of students began to pass us. Dumbledore had beckoned everyone back into the Great Hall for the feast, and everyone seemed equally eager to catch another glimpse of the famous Seeker. Many of them were already discussing ways in which to get his autograph.

"It was," I agreed, staring after Katie and Alicia as I watched them push through several younger students with such speed I would have thought Marcus Flint was chasing them.

"Looks like they've gotten a little excited," Cedric pointed out with a laugh as the two girls began to fight with a group of younger Ravenclaws—apparently they were all in a rush to find Krum and get a second look at him.

I didn't reply to Cedric because Angelina and Fred had once more made their way into my line of sight. They weren't holding hands any longer, but Fred had his arm wrapped around her waist protectively. They were sharing a laugh over some stupid matter or another as they followed their friends—_my_ friends—into the castle.

I scowled, but wrenched my eyes away from the sight. There was no point in fussing over the two of them. I had made my decision to move on just as he had apparently made his.

"We'd better get moving," I suggested as the crowd outside began to thin.

Cedric nodded and took my hand, leading me back into the castle with the remainder of the lingering students.

As we filed into the Great Hall there was a huge amount of excitement in the air. I eyed the Gryffindor table, spotting a seat being saved for me in my usual spot between Fred and George. Angelina had already claimed her seat to Fred's left.

I glanced back at Cedric, longing to join him at his table rather than enduring the sound of Fred and Angelina's flirting.

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable tonight," Cedric said, eyeing me thoughtfully. He really is too good at reading people.

"You didn't," I replied truthfully…well, half-truthfully. He had made me a little anxious, but nothing compared to the gut-wrenching horror Fred had unwittingly put me through.

He dropped my hand, turning to move towards the Hufflepuff table when I reached out to stop him.

"And Cedric," I said.

He turned back expectantly.

"I really do like you."

Cedric smiled back at me and gave my hand a soft caress before hurrying to take his seat before Dumbledore's speech.

--

**A/N:** I know that was a lot of Cedric and not a whole lot of Fred, but like I said, you may have to endure him for a while. I do promise there will be more Fred in the upcoming chapters…I suppose I was just as mad as Juliet about the last chapter so I didn't feel like talking about him much in this one.

You guys are great! Please continue to leave reviews—they always brighten my day!


	11. An Emotional Roller Coaster

**A/N: **Thank you once again all you lovely reviewers! I spent literally the entire day writing this chapter for you guys and I hope you all enjoy it! It's longer than usual, but I wanted to get the last part in before the next chapter. Thanks again everyone, I hope you'll continue to review!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER ELEVEN --**

_An Emotional Roller Coaster_

The entire school was on excitement overdrive after the welcoming feast. Professor Dumbledore had announced the opening of the Triwizard Tournament by introducing the impartial judge—the Goblet of Fire.

He explained that any student wishing to enter the Tournament was simply to write their name down on a piece of parchment and toss it into the flames. The Goblet would then select a champion from each school.

This announcement was especially vital as the would-be contestants only had twenty-four hours to enter their name for consideration. Needless to say, electricity was in the air.

I was particularly happy to hear that Dumbledore would be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet to prevent underage students from joining. I didn't want George and Fred getting themselves hurt (as much as I hated being in Fred's presence at the present time). Unfortunately, the twins seemed far from concerned.

"An Age Line!" Fred said, his eyes glittering with excitement.

I walked alongside him and George as we headed back up to Gryffindor tower after dinner. I had thought about staying back to talk with Cedric, but he seemed a little preoccupied with his friends.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron were accompanying us, and Angelina, thankfully, had fallen behind.

"Well, that should be fooled by an Ageing Potion, shouldn't it?" Fred said. His question didn't seem to be directed to anyone in particular. "And once your name's in that Goblet, you're laughing—it can't tell whether you're seventeen or not!"

"But I don't think anyone under seventeen will stand a chance," Hermione said earnestly, "we just haven't learnt enough…"

Fred and George glared at her heatedly.

"Speak for yourself," George snarled. "You'll try and get in, won't you Harry?"

I looked towards Harry for his reply, sincerely hoping it would be a _no_. As much as I trusted Dumbledore's Age Line would be impenetrable, I feared for Harry. He has always been a magnet for trouble.

"Where is he?" Ron asked, interrupting Harry's train of thought.

"Where's who?" I asked as the others rolled their eyes. Apparently I had missed something.

"Krum," George muttered, filling me in as his brother strained his neck to find the Quidditch star.

"Ron's obsessed," Fred continued, bending his head down to mutter quietly in my ear. I felt a jolt run down my spine. He was close enough for me to feel his breath on my neck. He hadn't been that close since Angelina had interrupted our conversation over a month ago, and it brought back a rush of unwanted feelings.

"Dumbledore didn't say where the Durmstrang people are sleeping, did he?" Ron asked as I struggled to keep thoughts of Fred out of my head. He was harder to get over than I would have thought.

Fred and George groaned in irritation and veered off sharply in the direction of Gryffindor tower, leaving Harry and Hermione to deal with their brother's strange fascination. I followed along quickly, struggling to stifle the feelings that arose from the sensation of Fred's skin having been so close to mine.

--

The next morning the twins and Lee went through with their plan.

I joined Fred, George, Lee, Alicia, Katie, and unfortunately Angelina, down to the Entrance Hall in the morning. The Goblet of Fire was set up there, and a small crowd of students was already standing around it. Amongst them were Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and several younger students.

As soon as the Goblet was within view Fred, George, and Lee sprang down the staircase in excitement. Angelina and Alicia followed them, but Katie and I lingered on the stairs. I didn't want to get too close incase something went wrong—and I had a strong feeling something _would_ go wrong.

"So, anything new develop with Cedric?" Katie asked as the two of us viewed the spectacle below us with mild interest.

I scrunched up my face, "Yes and no."

Katie gazed at me, her expression politely curious, urging me to continue.

"I told him I like him," I said with a shrug, watching as Fred leapt over the Age Line beneath us.

"What happened?" Katie asked as George jumped over moments later.

There was a tremendous crash as the twins were suddenly hurtled into the air, landing in a heap ten feet away. Katie and I snickered in amusement.

"Nothing _happened_," I told her earnestly, my eyes still on Fred and George. I felt absolutely no concern for their well-being. I _had_ warned them.

"Are you two—OH!" Katie exclaimed, interrupting her question.

I watched as George and Fred, still in a pile on the floor, simultaneously sprouted long, white beards.

The entire Hall burst into laughter as the twins got to their feet. Katie and I doubled over in hysterics along with the rest of them. Even Fred and George laughed as they began to make a show of it. Leave it to the twins to turn something totally self-embarrassing into a comedy production.

Amongst the amused laughter came Dumbledore's voice. He was chuckling along with the students, "I did warn you," he said, his eyes twinkling merrily.

Katie and I fought back tears as we clutched our sides. Despite feeling horrifically betrayed by Fred, I couldn't help but find this funny.

Dumbledore sent the two of them off to see Madam Pomfrey at the Hospital Wing, and the rest of the students, still chuckling, began to file into the Great Hall for breakfast.

"What was it you were saying?" Katie asked, turning her attention back to me. She was still quite out of breath from laughing at the twins.

I searched my brain for a moment before our conversation resurfaced.

"Just that I told Cedric I like him," I replied.

"Well, what did he say? Are you two together?"

"No," I answered, "I don't think so. Not yet anyway."

Katie's expression brightened at my last words. Clearly she had hoped I would say something to that affect. Honestly, I was uplifted by the prospect too. All of my energy being wasted with jealously towards Fred and Angelina had me drained. I always felt much more like myself around Cedric. He made me happy.

"So you'd date him?"

I bit my bottom lip and blushed, staring at the students beneath us. Although most of them had gone to the Great Hall, a few still lingered around the Goblet. Angelina was amongst them, clutching a piece of paper.

"Looks like Angelina's about to enter," I pointed out. Katie took a glance down at the Hall.

"Let's go eat," she suggested, and I followed her in for breakfast.

I knew she was trying to distract me from Angelina. My obvious dislike for her hadn't gone unnoticed. I wasn't the only one with less than friendly feelings toward her though. Alicia had expressed her dislike towards Angelina as well. In fact, it had become clear to all three of us girls that Angelina was not the same person she had been before she left Hogwarts.

Katie and I made our way towards the Gryffindor table where none of our other friends were seated. They were all either accompanying Fred and George, or cheering on Angelina—so we sat down near Harry and his friends.

They were discussing possible Hogwarts champions when we joined and I was surprised by the way my concentration peaked at the mention of Cedric's name.

"All the Hufflepuffs are talking about Diggory," one boy said—I was half-certain his name was Seamus, "But I wouldn't have thought he'd want to risk his good looks."

I scowled at the implication he had made and forced myself to bite my tongue. There was no need for me to get my temper fired up now.

My frustration continued to build as an eruption of cheers entered the Great Hall. Angelina made her way triumphantly—albeit, seemingly a little embarrassed—toward us.

"Well, I've done it! Just put my name in!"

"You're kidding!" Ron sounded very impressed. This irked me further.

"Are you seventeen, then?" Harry asked.

"'Course she is. Can't see a beard, can you?" Ron pointed out.

"I had my birthday last week," Angelina explained.

My scowl deepened. This was getting ridiculous. Now just the sound of her voice was irritating me. I _had_ to get over this jealousy thing.

"Well, I'm glad someone from Gryffindor's entering," Hermione said, smiling warmly. I clenched my teeth. "I really hope you get it, Angelina."

_Great, now she's got Granger's stamp of approval._

"Thanks, Hermione," Angelina said as she took a seat across from Katie and I without speaking a word to either of us.

I pulled my plate of breakfast close to me and leaned over it in an attempt to block out everyone around me.

It didn't work.

"Yeah, better you than that Pretty-Boy Diggory," Seamus said.

I snapped my head up and threw him a dark look. I caught a few passing Hufflepuffs doing the same and Katie joined me for emphasis. Seamus closed his mouth and said nothing else, afraid by the prospect of being mauled by two angry Quidditch players.

Angelina, however, cleared her throat and turned her attention to me.

"You're a friend of Cedric's?" she asked seemingly casually as she filled up her plate with breakfast.

I studied her expression for a moment before answering.

"Sure."

"Hmm," she muttered, taking a bite of her toast.

"Why do you ask?" I questioned innocently. I had a feeling she had a reason for asking that ran further than curiosity.

"Fred doesn't like him," she replied with a shrug.

I glared at her, and Katie shot a confused glance at me. It was her who spoke next.

"So?"

Angelina looked up at her, surprised. She seemed to have forgotten Katie was there.

"Just a fact," she replied.

"Well I don't give a shit who Fred doesn't like," I said firmly, trying desperately to keep my temper under control.

"Well maybe that's why he chose me over you then."

I immediately jumped to my feet in defence, my fists clenched tightly at my sides. Katie sprung up next to me.

"Excuse me?" I asked, my voice threatening.

"You heard me, Christie."

Angelina's posture remained unchanging. She continued to eat her breakfast casually, pretending to be unaware of the stares we were now receiving from the other occupants of the room.

I stared at her in disbelief. Had she honestly just said that to me, or was my imagination getting the best of me? I knew I wasn't fond of Angelina since her return, but I hadn't actually thought she was to blame for any of this. The only person I was sincerely mad at was Fred…but now…

I didn't say anything else. I didn't trust myself to remain calm enough to do so. Instead I turned on my heel, hurrying out of the Great Hall, hoping to clear my head. I heard Katie squabbling with her behind me, and then her footsteps as she ran to catch up. I was thankful to have her on my side.

"What the bloody hell was that?" she asked once we were out of sight from the staring eyes of curious by-standers.

"No idea," I grumbled irritably.

"I guess you were right to have a grudge against her," Katie muttered as we passed by the Goblet of Fire. There was still a small group of students huddled around in a crowd. "All along I thought Fred was the one to blame. Turns out they're both equally horrid."

"I guess so," I mumbled in reply. I wasn't in much of a mood to talk about the two of them. They had already caused me enough stress for one day—and it was still only early morning!

"You're better off without him, Juliet," Katie said kindly but firmly.

I turned to face her without ceasing my stride. "I know."

"And Angelina's a bitch, don't worry about her."

I let out a small laugh, "I know," I said again.

"Now where on earth did Alicia get to?" she questioned, turning her head from side to side as if the girl was going to suddenly make herself known.

"Probably ran off with George to the Hospital Wing," I suggested. "_I _may be on the road to recovering from my thing for Fred, but I'm certain she's nowhere near meeting hers yet."

Katie snickered in agreement, but didn't reply. I knew what she was thinking—at least George isn't an asshole—the same can't be said for his twin.

Katie suddenly cleared her throat very loudly.

"What is it?" I asked, turning to her in surprise.

"I think I'm going to go find out where the others ran off to," she told me, then lowered her voice, "I have a feeling your day is about to get better, and I don't want to stand in the way."

I gave her a confused look, but caught on when I saw Cedric approaching from the corner of my eye. She gave me quite excited squeal and then hurried off to find the others. I was suddenly very grateful to have her as a friend.

"Julie."

I turned my head fully to see Cedric grinning widely at me as he approached. I managed an honest smile back at him despite my cloudy mood. He always seemed to bring the sunshine back to my personality.

"Cedric, hi," I said, pretending to sound surprised.

"You're not at breakfast," he stated. His smile really was infectious.

"Neither are you," I pointed out.

"I was just headed that way," he replied, gesturing back towards the Great Hall. "Have you eaten?"

I shook my head no. My row with Angelina had caused me to forgo my meal.

"Care to join me?" he asked, throwing me another one of his gorgeous smiles.

"Sure," I said, nodding. I _was_ feeling hungry, I just didn't want to have to endure sitting with Angelina today. Eating with Cedric certainly sounded like a better alternative.

Cedric grinned widely at me and placed a hand on the small of my back. He led me eagerly towards the Great Hall which was now nearly full with chattering students.

I felt slightly embarrassed as he led me toward the Hufflepuff table. I was fully aware of several heads turning curiously in my direction.

"So, I heard Fred and George's plan backfired," Cedric said, breaking the silence I had fallen into.

I snickered as he led me to his usual seat, gesturing for me to sit down next to him.

"They're moronic, the both of them," I told him as I sat down in the spot to his left. As I did I noticed several eyes turn in my direction. I had never really spoken to any of Cedric's friends before.

"Ahh," he said when he realized the attention was on me, "Guys, this is Juliet."

I received warm smiles from everyone as Cedric began to introduce each person one at a time.

"Juliet, this is Codie, Ethan, Claire, Vince, and Rachel," Cedric recited, pointing out each of his friends. It struck me how very few people I knew who weren't in the same year as I was. I recognized most of his friends, but had no idea until now what their names were.

"We know who she is, Ced," the one called Ethan said. He had dark, messy brown hair that curled ever so slightly. His eyes were a striking blue, and his smile was friendly.

"Did you not think we'd notice when you started running off with her every chance you'd get?" Codie laughed. He was thin and had longish blonde hair. He also had a thick Scottish accent.

I let out an uncomfortable laugh as Cedric's friends began to poke fun at him. He shot me an amused half-smile and began to pile his plate with food. I did the same, selectively choosing what to eat. I was self-conscious about coming off as a pig, so I didn't take as much as I would have normally done. It felt odd to eat with so many people watching me.

"So, Juliet, are you entering the Tournament?" The third boy was speaking this time, the one called Vince. He had lighter brown, curly hair, and also had blue eyes. Although without the dark hair, they weren't as striking as Ethan's.

I shook my head and swallowed a mouthful of egg, "No, I'm not of age."

"That didn't stop those friends of yours," Rachel said with distaste. I could immediately tell she wasn't a fan of the Weasley twins. This girl had straight, dark brown hair that ran down probably as far as her bellybutton. She was sitting across from me, so it was hard to tell as the table blocked my view of her.

"Yeah, well, they're aren't the brightest," I commented with a shrug. I had the feeling she had been trying to get a rise out of me. It looked like I had another Angelina on my hands.

The boys all chuckled appreciatively at my sense of humour. I guessed they had been expecting me to stand up for my friends more effectively. Cedric obviously hadn't told them about my problems with Fred. For that I was relieved.

"Well then, who are you rooting for?" Codie asked curiously, his eyes darting to Cedric for a quick second. I didn't miss it.

"I don't know," I replied, taking a sip of my pumpkin juice. I was beginning to feel more comfortable with myself. "I haven't decided yet."

Smirks formed on all of their faces as they shot amused looks at Cedric.

"Yeah, Ced's really not worth all the hype anyway," Ethan said.

"All right, are we done with the jokes at my expense?" Cedric asked, sounding both amused and firm.

This time I joined in on the laughter. I felt myself become totally at ease as I finished my breakfast with Cedric and his friends, my good mood only slightly shifting as I caught Angelina staring loathingly at me from the Gryffindor table.

--

"So, what compelled you to enter the Tournament?" I asked, peering at Cedric with interest. The two of us were walking along Hogwarts grounds, enjoying the fresh air. The clouds disrupted any sunshine trying to brighten the ground, and the wind was chilly against my face and bare hands, but I felt content—warmed by Cedric's presence.

He scrunched up his handsome face in thought, as if he weren't sure what the answer was himself.

"The fame and glory?" I guessed when he didn't reply right away.

He chuckled and his sparkling eyes met mine. "Nah…more for the chicks," he replied casually.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes at him, but I knew he was only joking.

"You're disgusting," I said, although as I watched the wind blow through his copper coloured hair I thought just the opposite.

"You mean I didn't have to enter the Tournament in order to catch your fancy?" he joked, seemingly appalled.

"Catch my fancy?" I eyed him incredulously. "You think you've managed that, do you?"

Cedric cast his heart-stopping half-smile at me.

"I'm fairly certain."

I eyed him carefully, "What makes you think that?"

He grinned widely. "Mostly the fact that you told me."

I scowled and looked down at my feet, trying to hide the blush in my cheeks from him.

"Did I tell you that?"

Cedric let out a loud laugh at my embarrassment and I glared at him half-heartedly.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"You are," he answered simply.

"Gee, thanks."

"And yes, you did tell me that."

Cedric eyed me fondly as the two of us continued to walk. Neither of us had breached the subject of our relationship during our day together, and this was as close as we had gotten to treading down that road. My lingering feelings for Fred had prevented me from getting too close to him, and I suspected he knew that. Cedric had been very careful not to say or do anything that might make me uncomfortable.

His patience and kindness only made me like him more.

"It's almost time for dinner," I said, breaking through the awkward, giddy feeling the conversation had brought on.

"Yes it is," Cedric replied, staring out at the grounds around us. Madame Maxime's horses were drinking their single malt whisky near Hagrid's hut, but aside from that the place was deserted.

"Don't you think we should head back?" I asked, eyeing Cedric curiously. His eyes snapped back to mine.

"Ya," he said with a smile.

I turned to head back to the school and he reached out for my hand.

"Do you mind?" he asked as he slid his hand into mine.

"Not at all," I replied, trying not to get flustered.

He grinned at me and the two of us walked back to the castle hand-in-hand.

--

The Great Hall filled up rapidly. Everyone was anxious to get through with eating to hear who the champions were. I was sincerely rooting for Cedric, despite what I had said at breakfast. Screw Gryffindor Pride, Angelina wasn't getting my vote. And I could count on Katie and Alicia supporting Cedric too (Katie had filled Alicia in on Angelina's behaviour at breakfast. She was just as appalled as Katie).

Fred was very clear to let everyone know he _was_ rooting for Angelina, and George, who was seated next to me, was careful not to voice his opinion. He didn't want to anger me further by telling me he wanted it to go to her too. Maybe his opinion would change when I let him know what she had said to me earlier in the day.

Instead, George settled for keeping silent as he quietly comforted me by holding my hand under the table. As friendly a gesture it was, I didn't draw attention to it—certainly Alicia wouldn't have been too happy about it, despite how innocent it may be.

I anxiously awaited the end of the feast, partly to find out who the champions would be and partly so I could get away from Fred's continual voicing of his support for Angelina. Even with George's attempts at comforting me there was only so much I could take.

It came to an extreme relief when Dumbledore finally rose to his feet. As soon as he did, the excited chatter was muted into an eager silence.

"The Goblet is almost ready to make its decision," Dumbledore announced. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber where they will be receiving their first instructions."

I took a moment to find Cedric amongst the sea of students at the next table. I let my gaze linger on his smiling face. He was excited, I could tell. I felt myself break into a grin as his eyes met mine. He winked and I blushed, feeling both giddy and awkward at the same time.

I turned my attention back to Dumbledore when the lights began to dim. All of the candles, aside from the ones in the jack-o-lanterns, had been extinguished. The Goblet of Fire shone brightly, emitting blue and white flames. We waited, staring intently at the fire.

Only moments after Lee had whispered "any second" the flames changed to a bright red. Sparks flew from the heart of the fire and there was a united gasp from the crowd when a tongue of flame shot up from the Goblet. When the flame disappeared a burnt piece of parchment fluttered down.

The flames immediately changed back to an eerie blue as Dumbledore caught the bit of parchment in the air.

"The champion for Durmstrang will be Viktor Krum," he announced loudly.

Everyone clapped, and George released my hand so that we, too, could join in on the cheering. No one seemed surprised that Krum had been chosen—anyone could have seen it coming.

Viktor slumped up towards the head of the Hall, not looking at all excited by the prospect of being chosen. He didn't seem like a very friendly character.

Seconds after the cheering had died down another bit of parchment fluttered down from the red flames.

"The champion for Beauxbatons," Dumbledore said, "is Fleur Delacour!"

I watched as a beautiful, graceful girl with long, silvery hair rose from her seat and followed the path Krum had just taken. She seemed to be his opposite in every way. I was sure, however, that she was not as delicate as she appeared to be.

The entire Great Hall fell into an impenetrable silence now. I waited with baited breath along with everyone else to hear who the Hogwarts champion would be.

We didn't have to wait long.

It was only seconds before Dumbledore had the third parchment in his outstretched hand.

"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"

Immediately the entire Hufflepuff table burst into hysterics. I could make out Ethan and Vince jumping around foolishly, blocking Cedric from my view. There was so much noise from the Hufflepuffs that I could barely hear the groans coming from some of the Gryffindors.

I paid no mind to the disappointment of Fred and Angelina. Katie, Alicia, and I were all standing just as the Hufflepuffs were, cheering Cedric on as he made his way by his peers. My happiness was only broadened by the dark look I was receiving from Fred.

When the cheering had died down (which took several minutes) Dumbledore began to speak again.

"Excellent! Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real—"

It took me a moment to realize why Dumbledore had stopped talking, but when I did I was just as puzzled as everyone else.

The Goblet of Fire had turned red again, and moments later a new shred of charred parchment shot into the air. Dumbledore snagged it immediately.

There was a great pause while Dumbledore stared at the writing on the paper before he cleared his throat. In a clear, calm voice he read—

"_Harry Potter_."

--

The school was in an uproar.

The announcement of Harry Potter as the fourth Triwizard champion had caused a riot amongst the students and faculty alike. The Slytherins were furious that Harry had managed to steal the limelight again, the Ravenclaws disgusted by his constant attention-seeking, and the Hufflepuffs were possibly the angriest of the lot. From their point of view Harry's being named the fourth champion was just a clever ruse by Gryffindor to steal Hufflepuff's glory.

The Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students and their headmasters were angry for an entirely different reason. They believed that Dumbledore had somehow rigged the competition into letting two Hogwarts champions compete—an unfair advantage from their point of view.

The house of Gryffindor, however, was ecstatic. Most of the Gryffindors thought Harry a hero for managing to get into the Tournament even though he was underage. A huge party was thrown in the Gryffindor common room in his honour that night.

I seemed to be the only one with any brain cells.

"There's no way Harry entered his name into that Goblet, George," I argued as George began to pass around butterbeers. I had no idea if he could even hear me over all of the noise that was going on.

"Of course he did!" George protested, "Just because you and Hermione are worry warts doesn't mean Harry doesn't have a sense of adventure!"

"George, did you not see his face?!" I yelled, trying to be heard over the constant chanting. The noise was giving me a headache, and I had already gone beyond my ability to keep my head from exploding tonight.

"Yeah, he's a great actor that one isn't he?" Lee commented, bounding in and out of a crowd of overly-excited fifth and sixth years.

I was absolutely outraged by the stupidity of my friends. No one seemed to have any brain cells in them at all. Even after Harry came into the common room and insisted he didn't want to celebrate, people refused to believe he hadn't come up with some clever plan to hoodwink the Goblet of Fire.

On top of that, none of my so-called friends seemed to notice anything different about the way I was acting. No one cared at all that I was not smiling like the rest of them as they celebrated a Gryffindor victory. No one stopped to ask if I was feeling all right as tears welled up in my eyes when I had entered the common room.

They were all too busy enjoying the party…a party that I soon grew tired of.

I got hardly any sleep that night as the party in the common room continued well into the early hours of the morning. I had retired to bed early after downing a gulp of my Animagus potion. There was no way I could handle being around so many upbeat people at once…especially when those people included Fred and Angelina.

My good mood from my day with Cedric had taken a sudden turn for the worst after dinner had ended…

As soon as the feast down in the Great Hall was completed, Fred had cornered me in a corridor on my way back up to Gryffindor tower. I hadn't really been in the mood to speak with him, especially after what his little girlfriend had said to me at breakfast, but he was relentless. He forced me to speak with him, ignoring the calls of his twin brother to join him in getting the party ready for Harry.

"What's your problem, Juliet?" he had said to me, his eyes wide with anger.

I rolled my eyes at him, assuming his question referred to my hanging out with Cedric.

"What are you talking about, Fred?" I had asked a bitter tone in my voice.

"Angelina told me you snapped at her today at breakfast," he said, speaking low and menacingly.

My eyes widened in shock and confusion.

"What?"

"She told me what you said to her, about her not being good enough for me," Fred clarified, his eyes burning holes into my skull.

My mouth dropped open in shock.

"Excuse me?!" I scoffed at him, my face beginning to heat up in anger. "She told you _what_?!"

"Listen, I don't care what you're doing—if you're trying to get back at me by dating Cedric, fine whatever—but don't bring her into this. She hasn't done anything to you. Leave her alone." He spoke with finality, but I was too angry to notice.

"To get back at you?!" my voice was incredulous. "You've got to be _kidding_ me! Have you gone _mad_ Weasley?!"

He rolled his eyes at me angrily and turned to walk away.

"No, don't you turn your back on me!" I screamed, running to catch up to him. "You know you've got some nerve, Fred!"

He turned on the spot to face me again, his eyes livid.

"Oh I do, do I?" he asked.

"Yes!" I screamed, my voice echoing off the walls of the empty corridor, "_You_ were the one who refused to tell me how you felt about me! _You_ were the one who ran off with Angelina without so much as a warning! _You_ were the one who dropped me on my arse as if I didn't even exist! I am _not_ at fault here!"

He stared at me coldly for nearly a full minute before he spoke again.

"Piss off, Juliet."

And with that he was gone. He turned and left me in the deserted corridor feeling worse than I've ever felt before. All of the progress I had made with Cedric seemed insignificant at that moment, and all of the happiness I had felt from earlier in the day was drained from me. He had successfully managed to break my heart—again.


	12. My Broken Heart

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER TWELVE --**

_My Broken Heart_

I didn't speak a word to Fred after he had told me to piss off. Actually, I hadn't spoken much to anyone since my row with Fred the other day. I had been so upset over it that I had locked myself in my dormitory for the entire weekend, refusing to come down to eat or speak to anyone. I didn't so much as move when Katie delivered a message to me that Cedric was looking to speak with me…and I felt a little guilty about it. However, at the time I was in no mood to go anywhere near where Fred might have been. Leaving the dormitory would have meant crossing through the common room—a place that very well could have been playing host to Fred. I didn't want to talk to him…in fact, I have absolutely no intention of ever speaking to him again.

Unfortunately, I know my desire to avoid him for the rest of my life would be fruitless. Sure, perhaps I could avoid him during social hours for the rest of my life, but class was a different story. Fred had been assigned to be my Potions partner for the entire year…

On Monday classes recommenced and I had my first meeting of the school year with Professor McGonagall about the Animagus procedure. She had asked me to stay after Transfiguration class so she could speak to me about it alone. So, I waited patiently for my classmates to empty from the room before I approached her desk. I took special precautions to avoid looking in Fred's direction as he and George hurried out of the room after Katie, Lee, Angelina, and Alicia.

"Miss Christie," Professor McGonagall said as she gestured for me to take a seat in front of her desk.

I sat down and waited for her to continue, wondering what exactly she wanted to talk to me about.

"I trust you've been keeping up with your schedule?" she questioned, eyeing me warmly—or as warmly as Professor McGonagall was capable of…her lips were still set in a firm line.

"Of course, Professor," I replied honestly.

"You haven't missed a day?" she asked.

"Not one," I answered. I had been very careful not to forget to drink my potion even once. I knew every forgotten day would set back my completion date, and I couldn't stand drinking the vile potion for any longer than I already had to.

"Excellent," she said. She sounded surprised, "That puts us ahead of schedule."

I eyed her curiously, "_Ahead_ of schedule?"

She nodded seriously.

"In my original estimate I factored in the possibility of one or two set backs," she explained. "Each forgotten day pushes back the process by a fortnight. But, since you've had none I am happy to report that you will be fully ready for transformation by the first of January."

My eyes widened in shock. I did the math in my head.

"That's two months," I said. It was a lot sooner than I had expected.

Professor McGonagall smiled. "And in two months you will undergo your first transformation."

My eyes snapped up to her face as I felt a sudden lurch of nervousness run through my veins. I hadn't given much thought to how difficult the transformation aspect would be…

"There's no need to worry, I will be guiding you every step of the way," she assured me, having noticed my widened eyes. "And with your Transfiguration skills I expect it will only take a week of lessons before you will be ready for the lifestyle change."

The fear that had been present in my eyes was now mixed with a sparkle of excitement.

"This really is a life-altering event, Juliet."

I smirked at her use of my first name. McGonagall never addressed me as _Juliet_.

"I know that, Professor," I replied, a grin spreading onto my face with the realization that this was going to be happening soon.

"You seem quite enthusiastic, Miss Christie." It sounded like a question.

"I was just so concentrated on having to drink that God-awful potion every night that I hadn't realized how close it was getting," I explained.

Professor McGonagall looked satisfied with my answer. "Yes, well, I trust you won't be making any slip-ups now, with the process almost complete."

"Definitely not," I assured her.

"Good," she replied. "Now, I suggest you go enjoy your lunch so as you're not late getting to your next class."

I thanked her and rose to my feet, dashing out of the classroom as quickly as possible. I was positively ecstatic, and I couldn't wait to share my good news with the twins. Scratch that…I couldn't wait to share my good news with _George_. He and Fred were the only two people at school whom I had let in on my secret, but there was no way I wanted to share this with _him_ now.

I was grinning as I made my way into the Great Hall for lunch, but my uplifted spirits began to fall with every step I took.

Glancing toward the Gryffindor table I spotted my friends.

Lee and George were talking animatedly about something that looked to be extremely funny. Katie and Alicia were bending over their plates, whispering to each other and giggling madly—I assumed they would share their newly acquired gossip with me later on. Fred and Angelina (although I wouldn't count them as friends) were seated a few spots down—a careful distance away from the others. I guessed they were angry. Katie and Alicia had let them know where their loyalties lie, and it wasn't with them.

It wasn't the site of my slowly deteriorating group of friends that dampened my spirits. It was Harry. He was seated in his usual space with Ron and Hermione, only Ron didn't seem to be too keen on being anywhere near him.

Word had travelled from Hermione to me about Ron's accusations toward Harry (she had told me about it after I promised to make a donation for some _spew_ organization she has in the works), and it didn't sound like the two of them were on the best of terms right now—much like Fred and I.

I was fully aware that the entire school was under the belief that Harry had entered his name into the Triwizard Tournament himself. I knew this even though I had locked myself up in my dormitory all day yesterday.

Hermione had sought me out yesterday evening after dinner (which I had skipped). She began talking to me about house elves and slavery…nothing of any particular interest to me, but I noticed she seemed a little down. When I asked her about it she immediately dove into an explanation of how Harry and Ron were angry with each other and had pinned her in the middle. I felt bad for her, and listened, hoping it would do some good just to have her get her feelings off her chest.

I let out a sigh and headed over to where Harry was seated, pretending not to notice Cedric and Ethan trying to catch my attention from the Hufflepuff table. I would have to deal with Cedric later—I knew I would have to explain my absence from meals and social activity yesterday.

"Hi guys," I said, channelling my cheerful mood from earlier as I took a seat next to Harry.

The three of them looked up from their food curiously as I began to dish myself some lunch. Ron and Harry were obviously wondering why I hadn't taken the empty seat between Lee and Katie. Hermione, on the other hand, was watching me with a wary expression. Perhaps she thought I was going to do something stupid after our talk yesterday.

"How are you, Harry?" I asked, trying to sound casual and chipper as I munched on my food.

"Great," he replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"I can tell," I answered with a grin.

There was a pause during which I shoved a few spoonfuls of soup into my mouth before he let out a sigh.

"You can ask," he said grumpily.

"Ask what?" I questioned, my tone polite.

"How I did it. How I got into the Tournament," he clarified, his tone angry and bored.

"Oh, that," I replied flatly, turning back to my food.

"Aren't you going to ask?" he questioned in interest. He obviously assumed I was just like everyone else—that I thought he had wormed his way into gaining more attention.

"No," I replied simply.

"Why not?"

"Because I know you didn't do it," I answered.

He looked dumfounded, as if the idea of someone actually believing him was preposterous.

"I saw the look on your face," I explained to him. "Plus, anyone who believes a fourth year can outsmart Dumbledore is stark-raving mad—no offence Harry."

He grinned at me. "None taken."

I felt a little better then, after letting Harry know I was on his side. I'm not sure exactly why I felt the need to take it upon myself to bring the smile back to his face, but I just couldn't stand seeing him so miserable. He's been through enough in his short lifetime—he doesn't need his classmates making it harder for him.

I finished my lunch with a mild feeling of contentment warming my insides.

Now if only I were able to solve my own problems just as easily.

Letting my spoon clatter loudly against the bottom of my now-empty soup bowl, I turned my thoughts to Cedric. I felt bad for leaving him in the dark yesterday, but I had been far too upset over my row with Fred to be able to handle conversing with anyone other than Katie and Alicia. As of right now, they were the only people who knew the full story. I had decided not to bother George with it; he had done enough for me in regards to Fred. I didn't want to continue to smother him with my constant woes.

I bade goodbye to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, hoping to find Cedric before he left for class. I jumped up from my seat, managing to spot him just as he was leaving the Great Hall.

I ran to catch up to him and he turned when I called out his name. As he spun around his lips curved into a small frown at the sight of me.

"Hey," he said.

I frowned too. Usually Cedric greeted me with a smile—now he didn't seem at all happy to see me.

"Listen, Cedric," I began quickly, not wanting him to be angry with me about yesterday, "I'm sorry I didn't come see you yesterday, but I was…"

"Avoiding me?" he guessed. His expression looked hurt.

"What—no!" I stammered, "No of course not. I just…" I looked into his sparkling eyes and knew I should tell him the truth. "I had a fight with Fred. I didn't come out because I was upset. I'm sorry."

Cedric's expression immediately changed to one of understanding, but was wiped away quickly as anger flared in his eyes.

"What did he do?" he asked, his eyes flashing to where Fred was still seated at the Gryffindor table.

"Don't worry about it, I'm OK," I said, only half-meaning my words.

"Juliet," his stare was serious, "tell me."

I let out a sigh. "Look, I can't go into it right now—we'll be late for class—but if you really want to know we'll talk about it later…alright?"

Cedric considered it for a moment, his eyes studying my features.

"I do want to know," he said, "but only if you're willing to tell me."

I stared back up at his handsome features and felt a surge of affection run through me.

"Like I said—later," I told him, smiling warmly up at him.

He smiled back. "You can trust me you know."

"I know. But now I really have to go," I said, "I haven't even got my books yet."

"Alright, I'll see you after class, Jules," he said as I headed for the staircase in the Entrance Hall. His common room was somewhere down the corridor on the right.

"Sure thing."

"And Juliet?"

I turned my head expectantly.

"Try not to let him get to you."

I smiled. "I'll do my best."

--

As soon as the signal for the end of class had been given I was storming out of the Potions room angrily. The instant my feet hit the stone tiles of the corridor I was sprinting down the halls. My face was flushed red with anger and my hands were shaking. Tears were threatening to fall down from my watery eyes as I continued at a run.

Class had been awful. Not half an hour had passed before Fred and I started bickering. No, bickering is an understatement. This was full-on _war_.

We were partnered for potion making as usual, and we began our work silently. I had had no intention of speaking to him other than when it was completely necessary, and I expected him to do the same. Unfortunately, Fred Weasley's mind works much differently than my own.

On the first opportunity he got Fred demanded that I apologize to Angelina for what I had supposedly said to her. Needless to say, I fought back. I hadn't done anything to Angelina. _She_ should apologize to _me_.

That didn't go over well with him.

Within minutes we were tearing each other apart shouting cuss words and throwing insults back and forth so loudly that we couldn't hear the surprised words of our classmates.

It only lasted a few minutes before Snape split us up. He made George switch partners with Fred. That meant while I was on the verge of tears, Fred was enjoying the company of a smug-looking Angelina.

The good news was that Snape had been so surprised by our fight and by the fact that I seemed to be only seconds away from breaking down into sobs, that he didn't punish either of us—although Fred would certainly have deserved it.

So, despite the fact that George had been muttering soothing words to me for the remainder of class (so much for not bothering him with my issues), I was still just as upset when Snape dismissed us.

I had started to run before Fred had a chance to yell at me again…although I was fairly certain I could hear him catching up to me now.

I was almost at the Entrance Hall when I heard him screaming my name at the top of his lungs.

I didn't stop, even though I was receiving many odd looks from passing students. I must have looked ridiculous sprinting through the halls, tears threatening to spill from my eyes…not to mention the crazed idiot running six feet behind me.

I didn't stop sprinting until I felt his strong grip on my upper arm. He grabbed me roughly and spun me around to face him. I was forced to meet his angry gaze.

"Let me go Fred," I said coldly, fighting back tears in an attempt to remain calm. I didn't want him to know how much he had upset me. He wasn't worth it.

"Not until we get this sorted out." He sounded upset. Almost…_sorry_, but it might have just been my own wishful thinking.

"There's nothing to sort out."

I wrenched my arm from his grip forcefully and turned to run, but he was quicker. He grabbed both of my arms this time, causing me to drop my books to the floor.

By now people were staring. Students were gathered all around us to view the spectacle, but I didn't care. Teachers would come to break it up soon, I was sure, and then I would be free to continue hating Fred in peace.

"I said let go!" I yelled, my calm demeanour faltering.

"Fat chance, Juliet," he replied. His voice sounded angry, but also frustrated—as if he were the sensible one trying to talk some sense into me.

I glared at him heatedly, the rage building in my veins.

His grip on me intensified. I was sure he would leave bruises on my arms, but I didn't think about it. Instead I concentrated on mustering up the most effective glare I could manage.

When Fred began speaking to me again his voice was steady and his eyes were softer, but I didn't even try to pay attention to what he was saying.

My attention had been diverted—the crowd around us had split, and it seemed someone was finally coming to split Fred and me up.

"Get your hands off of her!"

I had a clear view of Cedric in the crowd from where I stood, but I hadn't expected it to be him. I had anticipated one of the Professors would be arriving to break up our feud, but I was relieved to see that none had arrived yet.

Fred didn't have to turn around to see who it was. His features scrunched up in anger once again at the sound of Cedric's voice.

"This doesn't concern you, _Diggory_," Fred said, spitting out _Diggory_ as if it left a terrible taste in his mouth.

Even as he said this Fred loosened his grip on me, turning to face Cedric as he let go of my arms completely.

Cedric was standing ten feet away looking angrier than I had ever seen him. It was terrifying. His handsome features were screwed up into a look of hatred as he held his wand in Fred's direction. He still looked gorgeous, but in a menacing kind of way.

Fred glared back at him with equal intensity, his eyes meeting Cedric's with ferocity. He reached for his own wand and pointed it directly at Cedric.

They looked alarmingly scary—as if they could kill each other.

As the glares passed between the two of them I took a chance and jumped forward. Acting quickly, I wrenched both of their wands out of their hands with force that shocked even me.

Both of them dropped their gazes to cast a quick surprised glance at me.

I turned quickly to Cedric, not wanting to stick around to get either of us into trouble.

I didn't say anything, but Cedric nodded once, fully understanding that I wanted to leave. Neither of us looked at Fred again as I gathered up my books that were strewn across the floor.

The silence was impenetrable as I piled my belongings into my arms. It was only broken by the sound of Fred's wand clattering to the ground as I whipped it down to the floor in distaste. Only then was I aware of the mumbles of the crowd of students.

The whispers increased as I began to move to follow Cedric. It sounded as though people were upset that a fight hadn't started.

It was a good thing a fight hadn't began, because as Cedric and I turned to leave we noticed the arrival of Professors McGonagall and Moody. They eyed us suspiciously but said nothing.

We had only made it a couple of steps before Fred spoke again.

"Oh, and Diggory." The voice came from only inches away from us.

We both turned just in time for Fred to throw a punch.

There was a gasp from the crowd of students, accompanied by several excited squeals. This was what they had been waiting for—entertainment.

McGonagall and Moody sprung forward to take action, but I was faster.

I turned Cedric's wand—still clutched in my hand—on Fred and spat out the first hex I could think of. I don't even know what I said, only that it worked.

Fred was hurled across the Hall, crashing into a group of shocked Slytherins.

It wasn't until after I had done it that I was aware of Cedric's angry yells and the cries of the over-looking teachers.

The audience, on the other hand, looked highly amused and very impressed. Several of them were staring at me in awe. I suppose they had been under the impression that I would be playing the role of damsel in distress in this little production.

I didn't have long to feel smug over my success because the professors were immediately on me. McGonagall was yelling about responsibility and rules and such while Moody was lecturing Fred about hitting someone when their back is turned…unfortunately Fred didn't seem to have any lingering damage due to my hasty spell.

"I would have thought you would know better than to use magic inappropriately Miss Christie," McGonagall was saying, "Especially after our conversation this morning," she added in an undertone. "I was under the impression you had more common sense than this."

I pursed my lips grimly. I didn't care at all about what she was saying to me—I just wanted her to stop talking.

"You and Mr. Weasley will have detention tomorrow evening," she spat, "And forty points will be deducted from Gryffindor!"

I bit my bottom lip to keep myself from talking back. McGonagall was livid and I didn't want to push her into giving me more detentions…surely I was lucky to only be receiving one.

Moody had shoved Fred off towards Gryffindor tower before McGonagall had concluded her lecture with me. I didn't look at him, but kept my features screwed up in a scowl as I stared at McGonagall's angry face.

When she had finally swooped away, shooing the lingering students off as she went, I turned towards Cedric. I hadn't managed to get a good enough look at his face during the chaos to see if Fred had done any damage.

"Are you all right?" I asked, stepping closer to him. His cheek was a little swollen and slightly discoloured, but it didn't look bad yet.

"I'm fine, you?" he asked, surveying me.

"No one punched _me_," I pointed out, reaching up to rub his swollen skin with the tips of my fingers.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked, unconcerned about his own injury.

I smirked. "I think I did more damage to him."

"You shouldn't have done that," he said seriously.

I looked up at him questioningly as he moved away, bending to pick up my scattered books.

"Didn't you enjoy watching him soar across the Hall?" I asked, "I would have thought you'd like that."

He smirked at me. "Now you've got to spend detention with him."

"I think I can handle myself, Ced. Haven't I proved that?"

"Why didn't anyone give me detention?" he wondered aloud, ignoring my question.

"Fred threw a punch and I hexed him. You didn't do anything," I pointed out, "Essentially, you're the victim."

Cedric rolled his eyes, making a move for the staircase leading to Gryffindor tower. I followed him.

"I thought it was supposed to work the other way around," he said as we began to ascend the stairs, "with me saving you."

"You've done enough of that already, haven't you?" I asked.

He smiled at me. "I kind of enjoy it."

I rolled my eyes at him, but scrunched my face up as I continued to survey his bruise.

"Don't you want to go to the Hospital Wing or something to get that fixed?" I asked, wondering if his cheek was hurting him.

"We'll go once we drop your books off," he assured me.

"But I have class in…well, now I guess."

"There's no harm in missing one class," he replied with a smile.

I smiled back at him, happy to see there was no trace of rage left on his handsome face. Seeing him smile allowed me to forget about all of the negative feelings Fred had caused.

"I just realized I never congratulated you for becoming Hogwarts champion," I said, feeling ashamed of my forgetfulness. I had spoken to Cedric just this morning and had completely forgotten about it.

"It's all right, you had a lot on your mind," he replied with a small smile.

"Well I still feel bad for forgetting," I told him sheepishly.

"You'll just have to make it up to me," he joked, throwing his strong arm around my shoulders.

"Well I'll start by taking you up to the Hospital Wing to get that awful bruise looked at," I told him seriously, eyeing his swollen cheek once again.

Cedric rolled his eyes at me. "It's nothing I can't handle."

"Even so, I don't want my favourite Hogwarts champion's handsome features to be lessened by a nasty wound like that. What would your fan base say?" I joked.

Cedric and I continued to laugh as we headed to the Gryffindor common room. It was only interrupted briefly when I ran in to throw my books onto my bed in my dormitory, and picked up again quickly on our way to visit Madam Pomfrey.

Cedric's cheek was fixed up swiftly by Madam Pomfrey, and she didn't even question us about skipping class. I guess there are a few perks to being a Prefect…too bad Fred and George have successfully managed to destroy that option for me.

Once damage control was complete and Cedric's face was looking just as perfect and handsome as always, he suggested we go outside and enjoy the good weather while we still could. Who knows when winter was going to hit…it could be just around the corner waiting to ruin the beautiful weather.

"So, mind telling me what's been going on between you and Fred for the last few days?" Cedric asked. I could tell he was interested…more so than he wanted to let on. He was too much of a gentleman to admit how much my connection with Fred was bothering him.

"You really want to know?" I asked with a sigh.

Cedric took a seat down under the shade of a large oak tree. He leaned up against the trunk.

"Kind of," he said, pulling me down to sit with him.

He positioned me in between his legs so I could lean my back up against his chest. I felt my heart race at the gesture. I wasn't used to being so close to him.

I racked my brain, trying to figure out where to start. It was hard to think straight when he was causing me to break out in goose bumps.

"Juliet?" he said, pulling all of my hair away from my face.

He began to idly run his fingers through my auburn strands.

It took me several moments to regain my train of thought. I was glad he was sitting behind me—I wouldn't want him to catch the blush rising to my cheeks.

"The other day," I began, trying to get my wording right without him noticing my discomfort, "Angelina and I…exchanged words." I was still strongly aware of Cedric's hand in my hair as I continued, "And she basically said that Fred's with her over me because she's…better than me."

I frowned, feeling angry just recalling the conversation between the two of us.

"What happened next?" Cedric asked calmly.

"Then, that night, Fred yelled at me. Apparently Angelina told him that I said she wasn't good enough for him," I continued, feeling more and more angry.

Cedric noticed and began to rub my back soothingly.

"What did he say?" he asked. I could hear the anger in his voice, and it surprised me how much Cedric seemed to care.

"He accused me…of dating you to get back at him," I said carefully. "And then he told me to piss off."

Cedric grew suddenly quiet, so I continued, afraid to look at him incase the fury was present in his eyes again.

"So today in the hall—when Fred and I were yelling at each other—that was the end of our row from Potions. He was trying to force me to apologize to Angelina," I finished.

Cedric sat in silence, once again twirling the ends of my hair in his fingers.

The quiet made me uneasy.

"Cedric?"

"Yes?"

"Is something wrong?" I questioned.

He let out a sigh. "I don't know."

"Cedric…"

Cedric took a deep breath and I waited anxiously to hear what he was going to say.

"You said Weasley accused you of trying to get back at him…"

I stayed quiet, waiting to hear his question although I already knew what he was going to ask.

"So, you and me…that's not why…is it?" he stuttered.

I smiled a little at his embarrassment, despite the seriousness of the conversation.

Abruptly, I turned around to face him. His hand dropped from my hair and he stared at me, his expression uneasy.

"You're serious?" I asked him incredulously.

He said nothing, but waited for me to answer his question. His eyes were curious, but there was a hint of fear behind them. At the sight of it I felt a surge of emotion flow through me. Only if he really liked me would he care so much about this, and I found it endearing that he was so worried about whether or not I truly liked him back.

"Cedric, you're ridiculous," I laughed, studying his beautiful hazel eyes.

"Am I?" he asked. His eyes were still serious, but his mouth twisted up into a small smile.

"Yes, you are," I assured him, gathering up my courage for what I was going to say next. "The only reason I would date you is because I like you."

I saw a flicker of happiness dance in Cedric's eyes and I felt my heartbeat quicken. His arms wrapped around my waist and he pulled me closer to him.

"Only…you and I…we're not exactly dating," I said casually, playing with the collar of his shirt.

Cedric smiled widely. "Are you giving me permission to ask you?"

"Permission?" I asked, staring up at him in confusion.

Cedric smirked. "Do you not think I would have asked you by now if I wasn't waiting for some sign that you'd say yes?"

I knew what he meant. He hadn't wanted to get in the middle of my mixed up relationship with Fred…and up until this point I hadn't been sure I was ready to have a relationship with Cedric anyway.

"And now?" I questioned as butterflies began to flutter around in my stomach.

A smile pulled at the edges of Cedric's mouth as he leaned in close to me. I felt my heart pounding like mad in my chest.

He hesitated at the point where his lips were a mere centimetre or two away from mine, and I felt as if my heart was about to break through my ribcage.

I swallowed hard in an attempt to calm myself and felt a smile tug at the side of my lips.

I guess Cedric took that as a signal to proceed because moments later I felt his soft lips on mine.

The kiss began soft and sweet as his lips pressed up against mine, sending shivers down my spine. I felt his arms tighten around my waist and I allowed my hands to snake their way into his wonderfully messy hair.

As I tangled my fingers into his locks I pushed my lips up against his with more force, parting them ever so slightly. Cedric took the invitation and slid his tongue into my mouth, meeting my own. He kissed me slowly and passionately as one of his hands made its way up into my hair. He held my head, keeping my mouth to his until we reluctantly pulled away from each other. Once again my face was flushed in embarrassment and excitement.

I kept my eyes closed, not wanting to look at him for fear that I might melt in his arms.

"Juliet, are you all right?" he asked, a hint of humour in his voice.

"No," I breathed. My heart was still pounding. "I'm much, _much_ better than all right."

He chuckled and I felt him brush a stray lock of hair away from my face. I opened my eyes then to see him staring at me affectionately.

His eyes were kind and warm and full of happiness…I was sure they mimicked my own. I could feel tingles on my lips lingering from our kiss and the butterflies in my stomach were still flapping their wings rapidly.

I smiled tentatively at him, feeling slightly bashful for allowing myself to be so greatly affected by him, but I was feeling too much at peace to be at all worried by it. Cedric's presence put me at ease and made me feel happier than I had felt in a long time.

I turned away from him, once again leaning up against his chest, allowing his strong arms to hold me in place. I felt him kiss my hair at the top of my head and smiled to myself as I stared out at our autumn surroundings.

Carefully he slid my hand into his and intertwined our fingers.

I stared at our joined hands fondly, and it was at that moment that I realized it…

Cedric Diggory would be the one to mend my broken heart.

--

**A/N**: A bit of Juliet/Cedric fluff at the end there for everyone to enjoy (At least, I hope you enjoyed it)! I think Juliet deserves some happiness in her life right about now. Nothing seems to have gone right for her so far.

I had hoped to have this chapter up sooner than I did, but as usual real life got in the way. The next chapter should include a bit more excitement—it may involve the first task of the Tournament. We've also got Juliet's Animagus procedure underway along with the Yule Ball coming up, so there's a lot of ground to cover in this story still!

I hope everyone takes the time to review!


	13. Promises

**A/N:** I am SO sorry for the lack of updates everyone! With final exams, graduation, work, and major writer's block regarding this chapter, I've been too busy to even think about writing. By rights I should have more time now that its summer, but I'm working full time in order to pay for university so I probably won't update as fast as I'd like to. I apologize deeply to everyone, but I'll do my best to keep the ball rolling.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER THIRTEEN --**

_Promises_

Jealousy got the best of me for the next week, only instead of Fred being the cause, it was Cedric.

I had never really noticed just how many girls had been following Cedric around since he had been named Hogwarts Champion. Every time I spotted him between classes he was being stalked by varying groups of younger girls. Nearly all of them would carry around quills and ask him for his autograph. Some would stalk him with cameras, and others would merely stare at him as he walked by. I was especially disgusted by the sixth years—I mean, for Merlin's sake, they're _my_ age! Some people need to learn some self-control.

…I guess I really shouldn't be talking. _I'm_ the one whose heart nearly bursts every time I'm near him. But I have a right to. He is dating me after all.

That fact was enough to keep my anger in check when I was around the Cedric stalkers. Although he had a group of desperate love-struck teenagers idolizing the ground he walked on, _I _was the one who got to walk next to him and hold his hand. _I_ was the one he met up with after class. There was no beating that.

After being upset over Fred for so long the top-of-the-world feeling Cedric was causing was hitting me really hard…and I couldn't be happier about it.

I saw him as much as time allowed—which, unfortunately, wasn't much due to class, homework, and Cedric's devotion to both his Prefect post and the Triwizard Tournament. I managed to eat lunch with him and his friends on occasion, and I had really gotten to know them. They were all friendly enough—aside from Rachel who doesn't seem to like me—and I've gotten on well with all of them.

In terms of the Triwizard Tournament, the entire student body had now chosen sides. The entire Gryffindor house was cheering for Harry, while the remaining three quarters of the school were backing Cedric. I was one of the few who hadn't taken sides. As of right now I was rooting for both of them. I would be happy either way—as long as a Hogwarts student wins.

Unfortunately, the rest of the school doesn't share my view.

The Slytherins have made badges to show their support…well, actually, that's not exactly true. They've made badges to show who they _don't_ support—Harry. In bright red lettering, they read:

"_Support CEDRIC DIGGORY—_

_the REAL Hogwarts Champion!"_

And then, when they press down on them with their fat, disgusting fingers, the message disappears. Then _POTTER STINKS_ appears in shimmery green writing. They wear them around everywhere and even pass them out to the other houses.

I was unimpressed by the fact that several of Cedric's friends have been sporting the badges, including Vince and Rachel. Cedric has asked them not to wear them (after I convinced him that Harry couldn't possibly have put his name in the Goblet…he was leaning in the other direction before), but they paid no mind to him, saying he was being too modest.

My detention with Fred after I hexed him in the Entrance Hall had passed without event. Neither of us spoke one word to each other that night, and we have been avoiding each other ever since.

It wasn't bothering me like I would have thought it might. In fact, nothing about Fred was bothering me anymore. I ignored Angelina's snarky comments and loathing stares, and I didn't even have to put on a happy front anymore. There was no need—Cedric had taken my mind off of all of my previous anger.

However, with the happiness Cedric brought into my otherwise bleak life came something a little less pleasant…possibly even worse than the jealousy. With the First Task approaching so quickly I was beginning to feel very anxious and concerned for Cedric's well being.

Now, I have never been one to worry too much over trivial matters, but the Triwizard Tournament is dangerous. I've heard the stories about what has happened to previous Champions…I thought it was going to be hard enough watching Harry go through them, but now I have to worry about Cedric too. If I had known being a mere spectator to the Tournament was going to be so hard, I would have skipped the entire school year.

On Friday after classes had ended, Cedric met up with me to tell me about his day. Apparently, he had attended a 'Wand Weighing Ceremony' for the Triwizard Champions to ensure their wands were in proper working order.

"That _Daily Prophet_ writer was there," he had told me, "I think her name's Rita Skeeter."

I nodded along, only mildly interested in the conversation. I was much more captivated by the way the lighting was making Cedric's eyes sparkle.

"She was _supposed_ to be interviewing all four of us," he continued, sounding bitter, "but she didn't speak a word to anyone but Harry."

"She was just looking for a story—the newest Harry Potter scandal was probably the best she could get her hands on," I replied, still watching his eyes as we walked hand-in-hand down the corridor.

"Well, I don't know what she was talking to him about, but they were locked away in a broom cupboard for ages before she came out to take down the rest of our names. I ended up talking to Fleur the entire time—hey, did you know she's part Veela?"

I looked up at Cedric in shock and felt a scowl form on my face. I remembered vividly the effect the Veela had had on the men at the Quidditch World Cup, and I immediately felt a surge of jealousy run through me. Suddenly I wasn't fond of this _Fleur_ girl and the amount of time Cedric had to spend with her.

Cedric merely laughed at my expression and squeezed my hand in reassurance.

When Rita Skeeter's article was published in the _Prophet_, the school was annoyed even further. Not surprisingly, the entire article was about Harry. Fleur and Viktor Krum's names were stuck at the end of the page—both misspelled. Cedric hadn't been mentioned at all, causing the Hufflepuffs to behave even more hostilely towards Gryffindor.

I could tell Cedric was a little annoyed by all of the attention Harry was receiving from the public, but he wasn't as upset as people thought he should be. Although he had entered the Tournament, he wasn't one for calling attention to himself too much. He was fairly modest, as far as Triwzard Champions go.

No one from the Hufflepuff house had one nice thing to say to any member of Gryffindor after the article was released. I was one of the few exceptions. Cedric's friends (most of them) liked me well enough to exclude me from their comments. They knew I was supporting Cedric, thus, no one made any remarks about _me_ being a traitor. I did, however, begin to hear unpleasant talk about me from the student body for another reason entirely.

It seemed my dislike for Cedric's fan base was being reciprocated. The females of Hogwarts were not particularly fond of me now that Cedric and I were officially dating. My popularity had been fairly high when I was the third leg of Fred and George's prankster group, but it was safe to say I didn't have as many friendly glances coming my way now. Cedric's fan base was definitely not too fond of me lately.

The strange thing is that no one seems to be deterred by the fact that Cedric has taken a fancy to me. The girls certainly haven't lost their confidence. They're still flocking after him, asking him for autographs and attempting to touch him while his guard is down. At one point I even overheard one girl asking for a lock of his hair. Before he had even had time to respond, I stepped in to tell her to back off. She was highly irritated, flipping her hair at me in disgust, but Cedric was amused.

"They say jealousy is an ugly emotion," he had said, "But on you, I find it absolutely adorable."

"It won't be adorable when I have to strangle someone," I muttered angrily.

Cedric laughed again as we made our way to the Great Hall for lunch. He took my hand in his—the gesture was natural by now, but that didn't stop me from developing butterflies in my stomach every time he did it.

"I told the others that I'd be sitting with you today," he said as he steered me toward my group of friends.

"Shouldn't the Hogwarts Champion sit at his own table?" I asked curiously. I was certain the Hufflepuffs would take Cedric's seating choice as further evidence that Gryffindor was trying to steal all of the Tournament glory.

Cedric shrugged. "They need to get over this rivalry anyway."

Katie and Alicia spotted us and quickly made room for us to sit down. Fred, George, and Lee were seated on the opposite side of the table. I took in their mixed expressions as we sat down.

"Diggory, you're crossing enemy lines I see," Lee commented cheerfully. Out of the three of them, he was the most supportive of my relationship with Cedric. George had extended his blessings, but I knew the continuing feud between Fred and I was taking a toll on him.

"Only briefly," Cedric assured him.

Lee laughed and began shovelling food into his mouth.

"So Diggory, thought at all about the first task?" Fred asked. His tone was slightly menacing.

The question caught me off guard. I hadn't expected Fred to acknowledge our presence at all. He hadn't spoken to me (or Cedric for that matter) since our row days ago.

"I've given it some thought," Cedric said. His voice was calm, but I saw his jaw tighten as he spoke.

Katie cleared her throat.

"Juliet, are you coming with us to Hogsmeade tomorrow?" she asked, effectively shattering the tension that had formed at the table.

Cedric turned to face me abruptly, his attention quickly removed from Fred.

"Oh, I was going to ask if you wanted to accompany me," he said casually.

I bit down on my bottom lip.

"Oh, well I kind of already told Leesh and Katie that I'd go with them," I said.

"That's ok," Alicia piped up, "We can all go together."

"Yeah," Katie agreed, "Cedric, why don't you invite your friends to come along too?"

"Sure," Cedric grinned, "Maybe Codie and Ethan will tag along."

I immediately felt the tension build back up again across the table. This time the discomfort was radiating from George. Although I hadn't spoken to him in private in quite some time, we were close enough that we shared an uncanny ability to know what each other were thinking. I knew immediately that George did not like this Hogsmeade arrangement. I sensed he hated the way things were beginning to change.

"Sounds great," Alicia and Katie said enthusiastically.

"I'd better go tell them now, before they make other plans," Cedric said, getting up from his seat.

He placed a kiss swiftly on my cheek and hurried away to the Hufflepuff table.

"You don't think he's upset that we stole you away from him, do you?" Alicia asked, sounding a little concerned. "Maybe he wanted to spend the day alone with you…" She was still a little awe-struck around Cedric. I found her intimidation funny.

"If he _is_ upset, he's too polite to say anything," Katie replied, as she continued her lunch. "What are Codie and Ethan like, Jules?"

I felt George's eyes on me, and I turned to look at him as I answered Katie's question.

"They're great," I replied, "Very funny. You'll like them."

I gave George a questioning look, hoping he'd understand and tell me what was bothering him.

"Can I talk to you for a minute Juliet?" George asked his voice professional and stern.

"Of course, George," I said cheerfully, glad to see our brainwaves were still in sync.

He rose from his seat, ignoring Lee's look of confusion. Fred paid no attention to either of us as we headed away from our friends.

"What was _that_?" he asked, once we were out of earshot of the others. He sounded angry.

"What? Hogsmeade?" I asked.

"Yeah, Hogsmeade!" he replied.

"What was I supposed to do, George? Leave Cedric out? Let him go alone?" I asked, feeling frustrated. I didn't like having to juggle my friends this way.

"Hogsmeade is supposed to be _our_ thing, Juliet," he said. His voice sounded sad and defeated.

"George…_everything_ is '_our thing'_," I said, "You can't claim all of my time."

"I don't claim all of your time," he said, "_Cedric_ does."

"George, I see you plenty."

"During class maybe."

"And lunch, and in the common room after dinner—"

"Before bed," he corrected, "Not after dinner. After dinner you're with Diggory."

"I still see you more than I see him," I said, and it was true. Cedric's schedule was so hectic that I did spend the majority of my time with my usual friends. When Cedric had free time I had to take advantage of it, as it doesn't happen very often.

"Fine. But what about Fred?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Oh come on George, do you honestly think Fred and I are ready to spend time together like normal?"

"I was hoping the two of you would be able to patch things up this weekend," he replied.

We had stopped walking and he was staring down at me with a pleading look on his face. I had never seen George so upset before.

I let my shoulders slump as I stared back up at him guiltily.

"George, you know I hate this just as much as you do," I told him. "Do you honestly think I _like_ being mad at your brother?"

"Well you haven't given much of a shot at fixing it," he said.

"George, you know that's not true. I've tried to work it out with Fred, I really have. But he hasn't been cooperative. Until he is, I think we're just going to have to give each other some space."

It was strange to me how easily I accepted the thought of putting space between Fred and me. Before Cedric came along I wouldn't have been able to bear being separated from either of the twins. The thought worried me a little…_am_ I as willing to fix my friendship with Fred as I say I am?

"I don't like space," George muttered, staring down at our feet.

I felt a new surge of guilt as I stared up at George. Throughout my feud with Fred, I hadn't thought of George much at all. I knew our separation was hurting him, but I just didn't realize the extent of it.

"George…" I threw my arms around him forcefully and locked him in a tight hug, "You know I love you, right?"

He laughed into my hair as he hugged me back, "Yeah."

"Good. And you know I'm not going anywhere?" I asked him.

"I hope not," he replied.

"Definitely not," I assured him, "I could never leave you behind—either of you."

"I don't think Fred knows that," he told me.

I scrunched my face up. I hated that George was right. Fred probably did think I was abandoning him for Cedric. Even if Fred did abandon me first…does that really justify me doing it back to him?

"Listen, George," I said, "Fred and I will make up eventually. But he's not ready to apologize, and I'm not ready to forgive him. Until that happens, this is just how it's going to have to be."

George nodded as he released me from his grip.

"I know. I understand. And I know he's been a git lately, but he really does love you just as much as I do. He just too thick-headed to realize he's being a jerk."

I laughed despite myself.

George grinned back at me.

"Just cut him some slack, ok?" he said, "He'll come around."

I hugged George once more, allowing him to nearly crush my ribs.

"I'll try."

He ruffled my hair playfully.

"Oh, and do me a favour?"

"Sure," I said.

"Don't let either of those friends of Cedric get too close to Alicia tomorrow. I don't want her feelings for me to be overshadowed by another guy."

He pulled away, giving me a wink, then sauntered back toward the Great Hall. I stared after him in shock, wondering why on earth I didn't realize just how intuitive George Weasley is.

--

"Did Cedric say who will be coming along with us?" Katie asked curiously as she put her earrings on.

"Codie and Ethan…as far as I know," I replied.

"He didn't invite the girls?" Alicia questioned. She sounded pleasantly surprised, and I pondered what George had told me yesterday. I wonder how upset he would be if Alicia took a liking to either Ethan or Codie…

"They were busy, so I guess its just the six of us," I said, "unless George and Lee decided to tag along?"

If George really did have a thing for Alicia, maybe he would come along to make sure she didn't fall for some other guy.

"I don't think so," Katie answered.

"Well, I guess we should go meet the others," Alicia said as she stuck her feet into her shoes.

I nodded, glancing at myself briefly in the mirror. I hadn't taken too much time getting ready. My mind wasn't really in the right place for a fun-filled date with Cedric. I was too preoccupied with worrying about the Tournament, feeling guilty about George, and now feeling responsible for keeping Alicia's romantic interests focused on my favourite twin. There was always the chance that he was messing with me, but just in case he wasn't, I didn't want to give him another reason to be upset.

"I never asked," Katie said, "What did George want to talk to you about yesterday?"

_Holy crap, is she some sort of mind reader?_

"Just Fred stuff," I replied as the three of us exited our dormitory.

"What now?" Alicia asked.

"Just reminding me that this…thing between Fred and I is hard on him too," I said. I didn't have any brain power left to make up a false story, and I didn't see the harm in telling the girls the truth anyway.

"Ouch," Katie commented. I nodded in agreement.

We met Cedric, Ethan, and Codie downstairs at the Entrance Hall where eager students were already congesting the area. The usual excitement of a Hogsmeade weekend was intensified by the fact that the first task was approaching rapidly, along with the fact that the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang would also be allowed to visit the town.

Cedric spotted me and I watched a smile spread brightly across his features. He held his hand out for me as I pushed my way toward him. I took his hand eagerly when I had closed the distance between us.

The effect he had on me was unbelievable. I felt as though I left all my worries behind me when I was with him. It was uplifting. My heart soared as Cedric placed a sweet kiss on my lips.

"Hey, cut it out," Alicia scolded as she and Katie caught up with us.

I turned around to grin at her and she rolled her eyes at me.

"You know, it wasn't very long ago that you were arguing with me when I suggested you talk to Cedric," she pointed out, "You were convinced that he was…what was it…a _dim-witted pretty boy_…yeah that was it."

I scowled at Alicia, remembering that conversation vividly, and grinned sheepishly up at Cedric. He laughed boisterously along with Ethan and Codie, who were very amused by my choice of adjectives to describe their best friend.

"You really said that?" Ethan asked, grinning at me in amusement.

"I might have," I said.

Ethan and Codie burst into laughter again, and Cedric held back a grin upon seeing my discomfort.

I cleared my throat, interrupting their fun and gestured toward Alicia and Katie.

"Guys, this is Katie and Alicia," I introduced, "Kate, Leesh, this is Ethan and Codie."

I pointed everyone out and they gave their hellos.

"What d'you say we get a move on?" Codie suggested, taking the lead, weaving his way through the students toward the door.

The walk to Hogsmeade was an enjoyable one. The boys did most of the talking, with Katie, Alicia, and me making comments now and then. I had never really been around Cedric and his guy friends like this before. They told endless amounts of stories for us—mostly from the start of their first year at Hogwarts—and we laughed for the entirety of the trip, enjoying every minute of it.

When we reached Hogsmeade our first stop was for Butterbeer. Both Ethan and Cedric offered to pay for the entire group, which ended in an arm wrestling match to determine who would pick up the tab. When a competition was suggested, the rest of us jumped in to have a go at it.

The end result was Katie, Alicia, and I paying for the drinks, as the three of us jointly managed to defeat Ethan for the championship.

We were easily the most rowdy group in the entire place. Katie laughed so hard that she sloshed Butterbeer all down the front of her robes.

"All right, it's the girls' turn to tell some stories," Codie announced after our second round of drinks.

"I've got one," Alicia announced, placing her drink down carefully in front of her. "When we were in third year—"

"Oh!" Ethan said suddenly, "I've got an even better one!"

Everyone burst into laughter as Alicia was interrupted. She looked slightly offended until Ethan sent her a flirtatious wink, then she blushed. I winced, hoping nothing would begin to develop between the two of them.

"Well go on, tell us," Katie said anxiously.

Ethan took another swig of his Butterbeer, and then cleared his throat theatrically.

"The two of us were staying at Ced's for the weekend during summer break after third year," Ethan said, gesturing toward Codie, "And we were bored one night so we decided we'd give each other some dares."

Codie immediately burst out laughing, so hard that tears began streaming down his face. At the same time Cedric went beat red and threw his hand out to smack Ethan in the back of the head.

Katie, Alicia, and I looked at each other in confusion. Clearly Cedric and Codie knew what story Ethan was talking about.

"What? What's the story?" Alicia pressed, as we all leaned in, interested.

"Don't do it," Cedric warned, while Codie choked out "Yeah! Tell them!" at the same time.

Ethan scooted over on the bench so he was out of reach of Cedric's threatening fist before he continued.

"As I was saying, we were staying at Cedric's…I don't suppose any of you girls know where Cedric lives?"

Katie and Alicia shook their heads.

"Juliet?" Ethan asked.

I shrugged. "Not really. I know it's near the Burrow…"

"That's right," Ethan confirmed, "_Very_ near the Burrow, actually."

"Ok…" I said, unsure where this story was going.

"So, Codie and I decided Cedric should complete a dare first," Ethan explained as Codie began laughing uncontrollably again. "And we knew, because Cedric lives so close to the Weasleys, that those menacing twins from Gryffindor were home…along with their little tag-along sidekick—Juliet."

Katie and Alicia glanced at me with amusement twinkling in their eyes at Ethan's reference to me. They were looking forward to hearing the end of this story. I, on the other hand, was still confused. I had no idea where this was going.

I glanced at Cedric, and his face was still red. His eyes were staring straight at Ethan, as if he didn't want to glance my way. His lips were pursed into a firm line.

"So, Codie and I suggested that Cedric fly over to the Burrow on his broom."

Codie and Ethan looked at me for some sort of sign that I understood what was going on. I was still confused, so Ethan continued.

"And we instructed him to snag something from the menacing trio."

My brows furrowed up in concentration.

"What on earth are you talking about?" I asked.

"I guess _something_ is too broad a term," Ethan pondered, "How about: Cedric was instructed to steal certain _wardrobe necessities_ from the three troublemakers."

My eyes widened in shock and sudden understanding.

"_**NO!**_" I said, my hand flying to my mouth in shock and embarrassment.

Ethan and Codie busted into laughter again as they took in my reaction. I definitely knew where this was going now.

"What? What happened?" Katie and Alicia pressed, even more eager upon seeing my reaction.

"Cedric…" Ethan choked out between gasps of air, "Ced—you tell them…tell them…what happened."

Cedric ran his hands through his hair in frustration and embarrassment. He looked at me apologetically as he spoke, but I could tell he too was fighting back laughter.

"So…I flew to the Burrow while the Weasleys were having dinner. I saw them out in the backyard and took a roundabout way so no one would see me….I flew up to the windows to find which room was theirs—the twins'—and when I found it, I climbed through the window."

He paused, looking even more uncomfortable than I felt, before he continued.

"Juliet's things were still in the room too…I guess she hadn't unpacked, which was good because it made it easier….I took every pair of their…underwear…that I could find."

I put my head down on the table and covered it up with my hands, hiding from the laughter of Alicia, Katie, Ethan, and Codie as they encouraged him to finish the story.

"Then, when the Weasleys went back inside, the three of us…_decorated_ the trees around the house with their belongings."

When I looked up Cedric was wincing as he finished the tale—probably waiting for me to lash out at him. Everyone else at the table was gasping for air. I, on the other hand, was close to tears of embarrassment and anger.

"Oh my God! I can't believe you _did_ that!" Alicia exclaimed, giggling beyond control.

Katie was crying with laughter, and Ethan's head was wresting on her shoulder as he laughed into her sleeve. Even through my embarrassment I managed to feel a bit of relief that his flirtation didn't seem to be solely directed at Alicia.

"Can you blame us?" Codie asked, "The three of them deserved a taste of their own medicine."

I fought back the rage as the memories of discovering my underwear in the trees outside of the Burrow came rushing back to me. I had tried to suppress the memory, and having it brought back so suddenly was overwhelmingly embarrassing.

"You could hear Juliet scream from Ced's house when she realized what had happened," Codie said, slamming his fist on the table in hysterical amusement.

Cedric placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

Surprisingly, instead of being angry like I thought I was going to be, I started to laugh.

"Oh my God," I said, tears of laughter beginning to form in my eyes, "Fred, George, and I have been angry with Bill and Charlie over that for _years_! All this time we thought it was them getting back at us for dying their hair blue…and it turns out it was you three idiots all along!"

The entire table, along with Cedric and I this time, burst into another round of hysterics, attracting attention from several people in the crowded room.

The laughter only increased from there as the boys described the variety of underwear I owned at the time and the difficulty they had placing all of the clothing in the trees.

After a long discussion about how they spied on the house from afar later on to see our reaction, I vowed to myself to prank them. Even if it meant I had to make up with Fred sooner than I would have liked, the twins and I were going to get back at them.

Until then, my job was to continue to act normal, to keep them from suspecting anything. I continued to laugh with them for the remainder of the day, pretending like I wasn't plotting my revenge.

--

I kept my revenge plotting on the down-low for a while, as my brain became completely occupied with worrying about Cedric nearly as soon as we returned from Hogsmeade.

Monday, the day before the first task, was full of excitement and anticipation. The entire school was chattering about the first obstacle the champions would have to go through. Unfortunately, unlike the rest of the spectators, I was not excited. I was nervous beyond explanation.

My hands were sweating from the moment I woke up in the morning, knowing that the first task was only a day away. I was frantic throughout breakfast, barely able to shovel my food into my mouth without it falling off of my fork.

George and Lee asked me repeatedly what was wrong, and the girls repeatedly explained.

"She's nervous about the first task," Katie said.

"Why? She's not doing anything," Lee pointed out.

"She's nervous about _Cedric_," Alicia clarified.

"Why?" George asked.

"Because she doesn't want anything to happen to him," Katie said.

"_Why_?"

What made it even worse was the fact that I didn't catch even a glimpse of Cedric throughout the entire day. It wasn't until after dinner when I interrogated Ethan that I figured out where he was hiding.

He was seated in the library, hunched over a pile of books. His wand was out, and he had several small objects lying out in front of him on the table—a quill, a button, and a small saucer.

"What are you doing?" I asked, dumbfounded.

Cedric's eyes snapped up from a thick leather-bound book to meet my own.

"Juliet," he said. His voice sounded frantic, and his eyes looked worried.

"What's wrong?" I asked, trying to keep the panic out of my own voice. There was no need to let Cedric know how much this challenge was bothering me. And as the hours went by, I was only getting worse and worse.

"Nothing," he said. I didn't miss the hint of hysteria in his voice.

"Cedric, what's going on?" I asked feeling both worried and suspicious.

Cedric studied my expression, as if debating with himself whether or not to tell me the truth. I had a feeling it had something to do with the first task, and I hoped he was well-prepared…but the panicked look in his eyes told me otherwise. Knots began twisting themselves into my stomach as I thought about what could potentially happen to Cedric if he went into the first task unprepared.

"To be honest…I don't think I want to tell you," he said, half-smiling at me.

"Why not?" I said, trying to keep my voice calm.

"You'll freak out," he replied. He was still smiling, but his tone was serious. It scared me.

"Tell me anyway," I said.

He paused, staring at me as if he were pondering whether the situation was worth getting me even more worked up than I already was.

"Please?" I tried.

He sighed deeply and ran his hands through his messy hair.

"Ok, come here," he said, pulling out the chair next to him so I could sit down.

I took a seat, moving close to him to avoid having our conversation overheard. I could tell from the look in his eyes that this was not something that was meant to be shared with the public.

"Don't freak out, ok?" he said. I didn't like the way he worded that question. It made me certain that I _would_ freak out.

I waited silently as he debated how to tell me whatever news he had.

"This morning Harry came to speak to me about the first task," he started.

I stared at him in confusion. I had expected this to be about the Tournament, but I hadn't expected Harry to be a part of our discussion…then again, what Triwizard Tournament discussion _didn't_ involve Harry Potter?

"Yeah?"

"Mhm…" Cedric continued, "And he told me that he knew what the first task is going to be."

My eyes widened in surprise.

"How does he know?" I asked, my worry muffled by my surprise and curiosity.

Cedric shook his head, "It doesn't matter how he knows. What matters is I have to figure out a way to beat it."

"Beat what?"

He paused again, and he looked away from me when he spoke.

"A dragon," he replied through clenched teeth.

"_What_?!" My shock was evident in the volume of my voice, as several working students looked up to see what my outburst was about.

Cedric's hand flew up to cover my mouth and stifle my next words.

"Shhh! Jules, be quiet! I don't know how Harry found out, but I'm sure if someone overhears us he'll be in a load of trouble."

I pulled my face away from Cedric's hand abruptly.

"Who cares about getting into trouble?" I said, not bothering to keep my voice low, "What are they thinking putting you up against dragons?! You'll be killed!"

"Juliet," he said sternly, glancing around the library to ensure nobody was close enough to hear us. He lowered his head, leaning in towards me and kept his voice quiet as he spoke next. "I know you're worried about me, but you must keep your voice down."

"Keep my voice down?" My tone was incredulous, but I spoke more quietly nonetheless. "I'm going straight to Dumbledore to complain about this—this is a death trap!"

To my surprise Cedric laughed.

"What is so funny?" I asked, feeling anything but amused.

"When on earth did you become so cautious?" he asked, smirking down at me.

"When you decided you wanted to put your life in danger," I replied sourly.

Cedric smiled at me and took my hand in his. He rubbed his thumb in soothing circles on my palm.

"Nothing is going to happen to me," he said calmly, "I promise you have nothing to worry about."

I took one look in his bright hazel eyes and believed him. I let out a defeated sigh. "That doesn't mean I'm going to be able to stop doing it."

A wide smile made its way onto his lips and he kissed the top of my head affectionately.

"Well, as long as you're worrying, why not be productive about it?" he suggested, handing me one of the many thick books he had situated in front of him.

I obliged, knowing despite my words that going to Dumbledore wouldn't solve anything. Cedric had agreed to enter the Tournament, he knew the risks. He was bound by a magical contract and had to compete. The only thing I could do about it was help prepare him.

"What exactly am I looking for?" I asked, scanning through the table of contents of the large volume in my hands.

"Anything that you think might help…I've been thinking of using some sort of transfiguration—I'm good at those."

"I guess that's why you've got these," I said, gesturing toward the array of odd objects in front of me.

He nodded, "Practise makes perfect."

I turned my eyes back to the pages of the book and settled myself into my seat more comfortably. I was going to stay in this library for as long as it took to help Cedric…and to keep myself from panicking I was going to pretend that my boyfriend wasn't going up against a fire-breathing dragon tomorrow…

--

**A/N:** I have a poll running on my profile in regards to Cedric's death. I'd appreciate it if you all vote and give me your opinion. I've been going back and fourth trying to decide whether or not I'm going to go along with the book and kill him off. I am more prepared to have him die in the end than I am if he lives, but if most people want to see him live, then I'd definitely be willing to try and work it into the story. Just so everyone knows, if Cedric lives in the story that does not change the fact that it is a Fred/Juliet story. So give me your opinions, please!

I've also started a forum for my series, as I'm having a bit of trouble with the writing process. I'd appreciate all of your ideas and suggestions if you have any. There is also a place to discuss the fate of Cedric Diggory, and you can give me your reasons behind your choice. It is called "Strange Things Come in Threes series" and I'd love for any of you to come give me your ideas.

Go to my profile to vote on the poll! The link to my forum is also on my profile page. It is located at the top of the page under "My Forums", but you can also scroll down to the bottom of my profile and click the link there.

And please, don't forget to review!


	14. The First Task

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews everyone! I neglected to warn you guys that you wouldn't get an update until now…I haven't been home in nearly three weeks and I didn't have access to a computer. Sorry I didn't tell you ahead of time. A lot of you raised interesting questions about Cedric's death in your reviews (and voted on my poll)…I'll address all of those questions in the Author's Note at the end of this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER FOURTEEN --**

_The First Task_

Lessons stopped midday on Tuesday so everyone could watch the first task. I felt pretty secure in saying I was more nervous than any of the Champions…well, maybe not. But I'd say I was pretty close. I would definitely qualify for most nervous non-competitor.

As soon as classes were dismissed I tracked down Cedric and latched myself onto him. I was determined not to let him out of my sight until I absolutely had to. I know my logic wasn't the greatest. No matter how much I pleaded with him to drop out of the competition, I knew it was utterly useless. But that didn't stop me from trying.

Cedric and I had stayed up well past curfew (allowable only due to the fact that Cedric's a Prefect) in order to figure out a plan suitable enough to defeat a dragon. We had finally figured out something that might work, and Cedric practised his Transfiguration for hours. It was a good thing we were both exceptional in that area.

But, even though we had developed a solid plan for Cedric, I was still far from feeling relief about the first task.

As all of the students and teachers began heading down to the field, my heart was pounding harder than I thought possible.

As the Champions' tent and the covered stadium came into view I gripped Cedric's arm even tighter.

"Cedric, I don't think you should do this," I told him, feeling myself beginning to panic.

He looked down at me with wide-eyes.

"Are you all right?"

He looked far more concerned about me than he should have been. He should be worrying about what he was about to face—I was horrified that he wasn't more scared about this.

"No," I squeaked. In fact, I think I was beginning to hyperventilate.

"You look ill," he pointed out.

I didn't answer; instead I concentrated on trying to avoid throwing up.

"Juliet, breathe. Everything is going to be fine," he assured me, looking at me with wide, worried eyes.

"You can't do this, I won't let you," I said, shaking my head.

"Juliet, love—"

"No, I forbid you," I said, trying to sound firm. It was a bit weak considering my state of hysteria.

He fought back a smile.

"You _forbid_ me, do you," he said, a teasing smirk present on his features.

I scowled at him and he took my face in both of his hands.

"Juliet, I promise you I'll be fine. Nothing is going to happen, ok?"

I let out a sigh, knowing I was being completely ridiculous. Cedric was perfectly capable of winning this Tournament. He was definitely more qualified than any other student in the school. He was quick, strong, and brilliant. But none of the reassurances could possibly stop me from worrying about his well-being.

I smiled weakly at him, "I think I've gotten in over my head with this."

"With the Tournament?" Cedric asked, quirking his eyebrow in confusion, dropping his hands from my face.

"No, with _us_," I clarified, "I had no idea how far gone I was."

I blushed at my confession and stared up at him bashfully.

He grinned back at me.

"I have no objection to you worrying about me," he said, "If it were reversed I'd feel the same way—actually, I'd probably be worse."

I blushed deeper at his comment and bit down on my bottom lip.

He bent down, pressing his lips to mine firmly. When he pulled away there was an unreadable look in his eyes. I thought maybe it was fear and excitement about the first task…but I sensed there was something more to it.

"What?" I asked curiously.

He smiled sweetly at me and gently kissed my forehead.

"I'm pretty far gone too," he replied.

If possible, I went even redder in the face, and was actually relieved when he announced that he had to leave.

"Go get yourself a good seat," he told me as he turned to leave.

I nodded, feeling a rush of fear pushing itself through my body once again. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him firmly once more.

"Be careful."

He grinned widely at me and I watched him hurry off to the Champions' tent before I headed to find a seat with the others.

I spotted Alicia, Katie, George, Fred, Lee, and Angelina all seated together with our fellow Gryffindors to cheer on Harry. George had saved me a seat…right between him and Fred.

I almost turned around to search for a seat with the seventh-year Hufflepuffs instead, but George spotted me and waved me over enthusiastically.

I was unsure at that point which emotion was stronger—my fear for the commencement of the first task, or my discomfort and anger at the idea of sitting next to Fred. It irritated me that he still had that level of control over my feelings.

I knew what George was doing. He was trying to force the two of us into getting along again. I could understand his reasoning, but he didn't understand what Fred had put me through. I just wasn't ready to forgive his terrible behaviour toward me…and I was positive he wasn't ready to own up to his actions either.

Reluctantly I made my way toward my friends. To my complete shock I realized Angelina wasn't seated next to Fred like I had expected. Instead she was seated at the end of our group, next to Lee.

As I pushed my way around the legs of Alicia and Katie, George grinned up at me.

"You don't look so good, Jules," he said cheerfully.

"I don't feel so good either," I replied unenthusiastically.

"Why not? Aren't you excited?"

He was beaming. And I knew it didn't all have to do with the excitement of the first task. He was grinning because I chose to sit next to him and Fred instead of running in the opposite direction.

I slumped down into my seat without acknowledging Fred. The tension between us was definitely present, and I could tell he was just as devoted to staying angry as I was. Sure, I would like for Fred and me to get past this sometime, but I hadn't really intended to forgive him any time soon. I had only assured George things would get better because I didn't want him to be upset.

I sighed.

George wanted me to be the bigger man and step up to make this problem go away, and he knew exactly how to get me to do it, too. He was going to share with me how difficult life had become for him ever since Fred and I started fighting…that way, I'd feel bad and want to make his pain go away.

Stupid George and his guilt trips.

"No George, I'm not excited," I replied, and we both knew I wasn't just referring to the first task.

His smile fell just the tiniest bit.

"Why not?

"Because I'm not ready for this," I stressed. It was true for both situations…only in regard to Cedric risking his life, I was positive I would never be ready.

"Well, it will be over soon enough," he said, "And everything will be fine."

I cast him an unimpressed look and waited anxiously in my seat for the first task to begin.

Cedric was the first of the four champions to face his dragon. For that I was intensely relieved. I was sure the anticipation would kill me if I had to wait until the end of the task to ensure he was all right. It was good to get the pressure off fast. I'm sure Cedric felt the same way.

The dragon was dragged out first, and I let out an audible gasp when I saw it. I wasn't the only one. Even though I had known beforehand what Cedric would be up against, that didn't seem to prepare me at all for the sight before me. Nearly everyone in the stands was clearly terrified of the beast…and we weren't even the ones who had to get past it.

The dragon was magnificent in a horrifying kind of way. It was a bluish-grey colour. George informed me that it was a Swedish short-snout. What it was didn't matter, it was still terrifying.

Once the dragon had been placed in the centre of the enclosed space, perched atop a high rock to protect its stony nest, Cedric's name was called by Ludo Bagman.

A huge roar from the crowd was given to Cedric as he made his entrance.

I held my breath as he stepped out into the area. If he was scared, he hid it well. I was sure if I were close enough I would be able to see the fear in his eyes.

I pushed the thought out of my mind, trying not to think about it.

Cedric looked determined as he stood to face his dragon.

The audience was silent in anticipation.

I knew exactly what Cedric had planned as he took a few tentative steps forward, his wand held firmly in his right hand, but I was suddenly very unsure about whether or not it would work.

I could barely watch as Cedric crept around the boulders, testing the dragon. He wanted to see how close he could get before he would have to make his next move.

I nearly screamed when a mouthful of fire was launched in Cedric's direction.

He dove quickly out of the way.

He wasted no time then. He lifted his wand high and spoke clearly to transform one of the larger rocks at the dragon's feet into a dog.

The dragon was immediately distracted and Cedric wasted no time in charging toward the nest of eggs.

He hurried around the beast unnoticed as it pursued the large dog, growling hideously.

Cedric dove, placing his hands on the golden egg and the crowd cheered…but only for a moment.

A great scream rippled through the audience as the short-snout changed its mind, turning its enormous head back to Cedric.

In an instant the dragon had let out another deafening roar, letting out a stream of fire directly on top of Cedric.

I screamed when he was hit, but saw that he had managed to roll out of the way.

He emerged moments later from the flames with the golden egg grasped tightly against his chest.

I didn't realize I was standing until the hundreds of Cedric supporters stood up in the stands to cheer.

It was with a burst of noise and the sound of Bagman's booming voice that I realized I hadn't been paying attention to the commentary, either.

"Very good indeed!" said Bagman, "And now the marks from the judges!"

I missed Cedric's score—I was far too busy trying to push past my friends in an attempt to get to him.

My heart was pounding painfully hard when I saw him get burned by the dragon's flames, and the relief I felt from knowing he had made it out alive was not enough to calm me down. I needed to get down there to see him.

"Julie, where are you going?"

George was on his feet, holding onto my shoulders firmly as I attempted to push past him.

"Where do you think I'm going?" I asked him incredulously. "Did you not see that?"

"Of course I saw it. It was bloody brilliant!"

I scowled at him.

"Come on, he's fine. Sit down and watch the rest of the Champions," he said, pushing me down into my seat firmly, "He'll still be hurting enough to accept your fussing over him later."

My scowl deepened and I heard Fred scoff from the other side of me. The sound was mocking, and I turned to frown at him.

"Is something _funny_, Fred?" I asked

"Not funny," he corrected, "Pathetic."

My hands clenched into fists.

"And what's that?"

"How much he's changed you," he answered. "You were never much of a wuss before."

I glared at him, enraged.

"Just because you're incapable of giving a shit about another person's existence doesn't mean everyone else is like that."

George cleared his throat loudly, clearly attempting to break the tension that Fred had caused.

"Take a look at that one," George said, and I turned my eyes back to the ground below us. "A Welsh Green."

A new dragon had replaced Cedric's irritable one in the enclosure. It was being hauled out into the playing field. I guessed I had missed the removal of the short-snout while I had been distracted.

I watched as several wizards worked together to move the dragon into place, and I saw a familiar splash of fiery red hair.

"Charlie!" I said, momentarily forgetting how angry I was. "You didn't tell me your brother was here."

I didn't look away from the struggle below as I spoke, and was surprised when Fred spoke next.

"He didn't actually tell us. He wanted to keep it a secret."

"He did mention something," George said, jumping in, "Remember? When we were boarding the train for school…he said 'I may be seeing you sooner than you think'."

George was excited that Fred had spoken to me like normal—the over-eager tone of his voice as he talked about Charlie gave him away.

I nodded thoughtfully.

"Yeah, I remember."

"Well anyway, he didn't officially tell us he was coming until he actually got here. We spoke with him yesterday," George explained.

I nodded, wondering why no one had told me.

"He asked for you," Fred said, still sounding surprisingly normal…he seemed to be making an effort, "But we thought maybe if you knew what was going on, you might tell…"

"Cedric," I finished for him, still not taking my eyes off of the now chained-up dragon.

Neither Fred nor George replied, allowing for an awkward silence to fill the air.

I couldn't deny that I would have told Cedric, because it was true, I would have. But, the same would go for Harry. If I had found out anything I would have told them both straight away. I didn't want either of them getting hurt. I would have felt personally responsible if either of them was injured while I withheld helpful information from them.

"Did Ron know?" I asked suddenly.

"…Yeah," George replied.

I snickered. "Then you could have let me in on it. Ron told Harry anyway."

I could tell neither of them had thought of that possibility before.

"I don't know if he did," George said, "They've been angry with each other lately…haven't spoken in ages."

I paused before replying.

"Would that stop you?" I asked, "If you were mad at someone would it stop you from looking out for them…stop you from caring?"

George fell silent. The question didn't really need an answer. It was obvious.

"It wouldn't stop me."

I turned to look at Fred, surprised yet again by his behaviour. One minute he was being a complete prick, and the next, he was trying to be nice again. It both baffled and irritated me. I would much rather he chose a side and stuck with it. It was much easier on me when things were consistent.

I didn't reply to him, even though he was staring at me meaningfully. I knew he was trying to establish that he was sorry, but if he was going to apologize he would have to do better than that.

Bagman's announcing had started up again, saving me from further conversation with Fred.

"Miss Delacour, if you please!" Bagman shouted as a whistle was blown.

Fleur was visibly more scared than Cedric had been. She was trembling, but she held her head in high determination.

Although Cedric hadn't taken more than fifteen minutes against his dragon, Fleur's task seemed to go by much quicker than Cedric's. Perhaps it was because I was less on-edge this time around.

Fleur used some sort of charm to put the dragon into a trance. I was impressed when it worked. The dragon fell asleep right in the middle of the enclosure, allowing Fleur to simply walk around it to reach the egg.

Only, just as she was about to reach it, the dragon let out a loud snore, and a jet of flame shot out of its mouth, catching her skirt on fire.

She squealed and put the flame out with a spout of water from her wand before reaching her egg.

I couldn't help but find a bit of humour in Fleur's clear embarrassment as she exited the enclosure. I hadn't gotten over my initial impression of her as a snob.

The excitement grew greatly when Krum's turn rolled around. Everyone was so eager to see how the famous seeker would tackle the task that there was no room for the awkward conversation from earlier on to come up again. Neither Fred nor George spoke of anything other than the first task during the short break between Champions.

"And here comes Mr. Krum!" Bagman cried.

Viktor Krum slouched out of the small tent into the enclosure, looking just as stony-faced as usual. I had yet to see him display any range of emotion.

Krum made quick work of his dragon, tackling it with a quick spell to the eyes. The dragon was immediately affected, and began writhing in pain.

Krum needed only a few seconds during the dragon's wails to steal his egg from the nest.

"He's done it!" George cried.

But, no sooner had George spoken did the flailing dragon swing around and trample several of the real eggs within the nest.

The crowd groaned and gasped as the eggs smeared all over the enclosure floor.

"He's going to lose points for that," I muttered.

Krum was deducted points—by every judge but Headmaster Karakoff, who gave him full points.

"Good to see he's such an honourable man," George grumbled.

Harry was by far the most spectacular competitor during the first task, taking everyone by surprise. No one expected the young fourth year would be able to outdo any of the other contestants.

In a stroke of pure brilliance, Harry used a summoning charm to call his Firebolt to him. From there the task was cake. A few dives and several good dodges later and he had the egg—nearly injury free. He did manage to get cut by one of the long spikes on the dragon's tail, but he still had the greatest performance of the lot.

I didn't wait around any longer to see Harry's score. It was a miracle I had lasted through the entire first task. If Fred hadn't caught me off guard earlier on, I wouldn't have been so distracted.

Without so much as a goodbye to any of the others, I sprinted through the cheering crowd as best I could down to the entrance to the first-aid tent. Hermione was already charging toward the tent as well, followed closely by Ron—I guessed their feud was as good as over.

The three of us hurried through the giant cheering crowd of students, pushing our way to the tent. We didn't stop when we reached level ground and charged directly through the tent entrance, coming face-to-face with Harry.

"Harry, you were brilliant!" Hermione squealed, "You were amazing! You really were!"

Harry was looking directly at Ron—who was white as a ghost—as Hermione spoke. I pushed past the two of them, hoping to find Cedric, and slapped Harry on the back as I passed.

"Well done, Harry," I congratulated him, though I would have been surprised if he had noticed. He and Ron seemed to be on the brink of a recovery.

Hurrying through the tent I spotted Cedric's silhouette through the sheer fabric separating him from the others. Madam Pomfrey was fussing over him, asking him questions about how he felt.

I burst through the sheet without bothering to go around the side to the front opening. I ran straight through the fabric wall, forgetting entirely about courtesy and grinned sheepishly when Madam Pomfrey squealed in surprise.

"You children have no manners," she muttered darkly. She shuffled out of the way and left to tend to another champion, leaving me alone with Cedric.

I planned on surveying him for injuries, but I didn't get very far before I gasped in horror. The left side of Cedric's face was entirely covered in a thick orange paste, presumably healing the burn I had witnessed him get.

Cedric replied to my horror merely by grinning widely.

"I told you I'd be fine," he said simply.

"Fine?!" I replied, "A dragon took off half of your face!"

Cedric chuckled, "Hardly. If that had happened it would be a lot more difficult to heal. The skin will be back to normal in under an hour," he assured me. "Come here."

He held his arms out to me and stood up from his bed. I tentatively went forward to hug him, careful not to squeeze too hard. I didn't want to cause him any more harm.

"You scared the bloody hell out of me," I mumbled into his chest as he embraced me gently.

He laughed again. "Well it couldn't have been that bad. I half expected you to come bursting through the door as soon as I was finished."

"I would have," I assured him, "George held me back."

Cedric chuckled again and pressed the good side of his face against the top of my head.

"Well there's no need for you to worry anymore."

"Right, no need, except for two more equally dangerous tasks you still need to face," I said, grimacing at the thought.

Cedric pulled away from me, but didn't release his hold on my waist.

"You get far too worked up," he said. "The dragon was actually kind of fun."

I scowled at him, but didn't get to say anything more as we were interrupted by a newcomer.

"There you are!"

I recognized the voice immediately and turned around to see Charlie Weasley.

"Ron told me you were in here."

"Charlie!" I said as Cedric let go of me.

Charlie grabbed me in a tight hug and looked at Cedric from over my head.

"Good to see you again Diggory," he said, "Nice work with the dragon—how's that burn treating you?"

"It's not bad," Cedric answered.

Charlie laughed and turned his attention back to me, releasing me from his grasp.

"I was upset you didn't come to see me earlier. Didn't Fred and George tell you I was here?"

I shook my head, "No, they didn't. I didn't know you were around until I spotted you today."

Charlie shook his head, "I'm going to have to do something about those two."

I grinned at him. "So how long are you around for?"

"Not long," he replied, "I'm heading back out tomorrow—I probably won't see you again, which is why I came to see you now. I'm about to send an owl to Mum. She's desperate to hear what happened with Harry."

He rolled his eyes and I laughed.

"As if she doesn't already have enough children to deal with, she's also worrying about you, Harry, and Hermione like you're her own as well."

"Well I guess you shouldn't keep her waiting," I said.

"Yeah I'd better get going," he said, pulling me into another hug. "You behave yourself. I won't be seeing you again until the summer I suspect."

"No?" I asked. I was usually invited to the Burrow for Christmas break. Maybe Charlie wasn't going to make it up this year.

"Well you'll all be at school through Christmas this year," he said as if it were obvious.

"I will be?" I asked.

He grinned at me, "I guess Dumbledore hasn't told you that part yet. Oh well, I'll be seeing you soon enough, just keep out of trouble."

He ruffled my hair fondly and waved to Cedric.

"Good luck with the rest of the Tournament, mate," he said, "Oh, and Bagman wants a word with the Champions in the other tent."

"Thanks," Cedric replied with an answering wave, and Charlie hurried off to send an owl to his mother.

I turned back to Cedric as soon as Charlie had left to see the right side of his face frowning slightly.

"What's wrong?" I asked, "Are you in pain?"

"No," he replied, "I was just wondering. I know you spend a lot of time with the Weasleys…"

"Yeah?"

"Would you really be going to spend all of Christmas holiday with them this year…if we weren't staying here that is?" he questioned.

I shrugged, "I go every year."

"But even now," he pressed. "I mean…if I had wanted to invite you to visit me…"

I waited for him to finish, feeling a smile tug at my lips.

"Would you not have come?" he asked. He looked embarrassed—from what I could tell. Not being able to see the left side of his face made it more difficult to decipher his mood.

I grinned at him.

"Of course I would have come," I told him, moving to envelope him in a hug again.

"What about the Weasleys?" he asked.

"I'd squeeze in a couple days with them too," I replied, "But I would love to spend Christmas with you."

He smiled down at me and ran his hand through my hair.

"Well you still can, even though we're not going to be returning home. We can spend Christmas together here."

I grinned, wishing the orange paste wasn't in the way, preventing me from kissing him silly.

"Sounds perfect."

--

**A/N:** Thank all of you again for all of your lovely reviews. I had to read them over once more to remember what it was I wanted to talk about…

First off, thank you to everyone who voted in the Cedric poll. The results are closer than I expected, although the majority did vote the way I anticipated. I have been leaning toward keeping the story cannon and killing Cedric off in the third task, but I was just interested to see if anyone would like to see him live on. I have thought of a back-up plan in case I do decide to have him live through _And the Plot Thickens_, but for the record, I have always planned to have him die during the third task (I just didn't anticipate that I would become so attached to him).

Also, thanks to the two people who have written their opinions on the forum. That was simply a trial thing. I thought a forum might be cool. I'm glad to see people like the idea of Alicia and George, as well as Katie being paired with one of the Hufflepuff boys (I was leaning toward Ethan).

A few of you have picked up on and asked about the arrangements for the Yule Ball. As everyone knows, in the novel Cedric goes to the Ball with Cho Chang. Here's my plan: If I decide that Cedric is going to die in the third task, then he will be going to the Ball with Juliet. If he is going to live through the third task, he will be going to the Ball with Cho. I have my reasons for doing this, this way if I do decide to keep him alive, I have a reasonable way of managing to keep this story Juliet/Fred.

I know I have tried to keep this story as close to the books as possible, but I am always going to be making my own changes, so don't expect that everything will be exactly the same. I have to look at the way I've built relationships and characters up in order to decide how things are going to play out in my story.

If any of you have any comments or questions about any of the things discussed in this note…or any new questions, then ask away! I'll be happy to answer them!

P.S. If anyone hasn't voted on the Cedric poll, it is still up so you can still vote. (If anyone has happened to change their mind, let me know in your reviews or on the forum…I'm still interested to know how many are wanting him alive).

Thanks everyone!


	15. Reconciliations

**A/N:** Early update everyone! This chapter is for my two most loyal reviewers: Katherine-The-Crowned and xXxSour-LemonxXx. The two of them have reviewed every single chapter of this story. Endless thank-yous to both of you, and to all of my reviewers!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my characters and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER FIFTEEN --**

_Reconciliations_

The buzz in the air for the next few days was never-ending. Just about every conversation I heard was about the first task, and plenty of it was now in support of Harry.

His unbelievable display of talent and ability had won over much of the school's support. After seeing him go up against the terrifying dragon, it seemed nearly everyone (but the Slytherins, of course) had joined my side and started backing both Cedric and Harry.

The first task had placed both Harry and Krum neck-in-neck for first place—although it was clear to everyone that Harry deserved to hold that title as his own. He would have been solely in first place if it hadn't been for Karakoff's unfair judgement. He awarded Harry a measly four points next to Krum's undeserved ten.

The second task was set to take place on February 24th, giving the champions plenty of time to decipher the clue they had received—one which lay within their golden egg. The only problem with having three months placed in between the first and second tasks was the fact that the pressure was swiftly removed. I knew Cedric wouldn't like to leave his preparation to the last minute, but I was slightly more worried about Harry. From what I knew of the boy, as well as Ron, the two tended to get a little too wrapped-up in things.

What was even more disturbing was the fact that the clue hidden inside the golden egg was extremely unhelpful—and quite bizarre.

During Harry's congratulatory party thrown in the Gryffindor common room after the first task, he had opened the egg in front of an anxious crowd of supporters. Instead of a conventional clue…maybe a word puzzle of some kind…the egg emitted the most horrifying and ear-splitting sound I have ever in my life had the misfortune of hearing. What it meant no one was able to understand. I found that I couldn't help puzzling over it myself. I only hoped Cedric and Harry would put in some extra effort to figure out what it all meant.

I had enough to worry about as it was…

December had swept across Hogwarts swiftly, and with the Christmas break drawing near I began to focus my attention on something I had left forgotten in my worry about the first task—my revenge on Cedric, Codie, and Ethan.

My plan was in the early stages of work, but I knew that George would definitely want to take part in it. Begrudgingly, I knew I should make an effort to include Fred as well. This whole best-friend-hating-each-other thing was really starting to get old. Despite how mad I was with him, I was willing to put it all aside on order to satisfy my need for a good prank.

So, one night, when I noticed the twins were not in the common room with the rest of us, I decided it was time to suck it up and face the music. If I wanted my plan to work out, I would have to make sure to get things patched up with Fred as soon as possible.

"Hey Lee," I said from my seat by the fire, "Do you know where the twins are?"

Lee looked slightly surprised by my question. It had been a long time since I had wanted to talk to _both_ of the twins at once.

"Uh, sure," he said, casting a wary look toward Katie and Alicia, "They're upstairs."

"Thanks," I said.

I didn't wait for the rest of them to question my motives, although I knew the girls would want to know what was going on when I spoke to them later. I didn't think they were going to support my decision to confront and forgive Fred as much as George and Lee might. Unlike the boys, Katie and Alicia knew exactly how hurt I had been by Fred.

Surprisingly, it didn't bother me too much as I headed up the stairs to the boys' dormitory. I knew Fred was at fault and he should be the one to confront me, but I didn't mind stepping up to be the bigger man. This was, after all, for the greater good. I wasn't going to be able to pull off a revenge prank by myself. I needed my partners in crime.

I knocked on the door when I reached the top of the stairs, surprising myself with the formality. Usually I would have just waltzed right in. It's not like they ever knocked on my bedroom door when they wanted to talk to me.

George's muffled voice answered through the door.

"Yeah?"

"It's me," I called.

The door opened almost immediately at the flick of George's wand to reveal George lying casually on his four-poster bed. Fred was standing, facing the door, looking a slight bit tense upon seeing me there.

"What's up?" George asked, not turning his head to greet me.

I contemplated the best way to do this. Should I bring up the Cedric story first, or should I mend the friendship? I suddenly wished I had thought this through a little more.

When I didn't answer right away George turned to view me with a look of confusion on his face. He suddenly understood the awkwardness in my stance, and became aware of the way Fred was staring at me.

He cleared his throat loudly.

"Ehem—I'll uh, leave you guys alone for a minute," he said, getting up from his place and hurrying toward the door. On his way out he grinned at me. "Thank you," he whispered.

I took step into the room as George exited, closing the door as he left. The silence that fell between Fred and I was extremely awkward.

I swallowed hard and took a deep breath. This shouldn't be hard. I wanted this to go away. I wanted Fred as a friend again, and I was sure after our conversation at the first task that he wanted things to go back to normal as well.

"Hey Fred," I said, sounding surprisingly casual. We both knew why I was there.

Fred grinned at me.

"Hey Jules."

I managed a small smile back as I took a few more steps into the room. Hesitantly I took a seat on George's bed, smoothing out the wrinkles on the sheet as I did so.

"So…" I said, feeling incredibly self conscious for reasons I couldn't even understand, "I don't know about you…but I think that maybe this feud has gone on long enough."

I was surprised at how mature I sounded. I didn't feel like lashing out at him at all. Was it possible, that maybe I had…dare I say it…grown up? If I had it definitely had something to do with Cedric. Perhaps he had matured me just a little bit.

Fred scratched the back of his neck nervously.

"Really? I thought you were enjoying yourself…I know I was," he joked.

Same old Fred. He still didn't like expressing his emotions. Didn't he realize that's what got us into this mess in the first place?

I shook my head. "I definitely wasn't."

He let out a sigh. "Me neither."

I stared at him for a long moment before I continued. I knew we would have to do this whole make-up thing right. We would have to get this all out in the open before we would be able to move past it. If we half-assed our way through mending our friendship, it would only lave room for the anger to make its way back in.

"So, how about we fix it?" I suggested, giving him a tentative smile.

"Sounds like a plan…so I guess I should start," he grimaced.

I waited. I knew all along I hadn't been at fault, and it looked like Fred knew it too.

"I'm sorry," Fred said and then took a deep breath, "I'm sorry for everything. For not telling you how I felt about you…for messing with your head…more recently, for treating you and Cedric so badly…for yelling at you…for everything I said that hurt you…for…everything, Juliet…absolutely everything. I've been a ruddy awful friend."

I watched him struggle through his speech with astonishment. I had expected an apology, but I hadn't expected what I saw now—the emotion, the great depth of hurt I could see in his eyes. He really was sorry.

"Yeah you have," I replied. "Ok, step two. Mind explaining yourself? I'd kind of like to know what the bloody hell was going on in your head through all of this."

He smirked at me and took a seat on his bed across from where I was seated.

"Where do you want me to start?" he asked, "And I warn you…You may not be happy with a lot of my answers. I'll admit I didn't handle any of this very well."

I pondered that. At least he was being honest. But where did I want to start? Did I really want to get into all of the feelings he'd harboured for me last year, and I for him? That might just bring up an uncomfortable situation. I didn't know how Fred felt about me now, but I was happy with Cedric. I didn't want to start by making things awkward. So, I decided I'd skip that part.

"Angelina," I said. Saying her name didn't hold quite so much anger as it used to. She hadn't really spoken to me lately, although I had never forgiven her for what she had done to Fred and me. Of course, now that the connection between Fred and her seemed to have been lost, I didn't have much of a reason to hate her. They weren't together, thus, she wasn't bothering me anymore.

Fred sighed deeply and ran his hand through his hair.

"To be honest, I'm not exactly sure what happened to me…That night when we first came back to Hogwarts, I saw something developing between you and Cedric…I knew it was there…and it…scared me."

I stared at him as he spoke. I was a bit in shock that we were finally talking openly about all of the messed up things that had gone on between us lately. I was having an out of body experience.

"When I pulled you aside I wanted to tell you how I felt…and I got really close too…and then, Ang showed up—"

It bothered me that he had called her _Ang_. Even if I wasn't exactly mad at her anymore, I still wasn't willing to be her friend, and I hated that Fred still considered her one.

I sighed, "Yeah, I remember that."

"Yeah, well…after that interruption I sort of felt like…maybe I _shouldn't_ be telling you that…that maybe I should just let you move on with Cedric and forget about me."

He paused and looked at me thoughtfully, as if he was trying to word what he was going to say next.

"After that interruption, I had time to think over what I was going to do, and I decided I didn't want to get in the way of your happiness…because that's what I was doing. I was making you miserable, and I didn't want that….I guess Angelina was my way of trying to get over you while letting you move on from me."

I felt a sharp stabbing pain in my heart as his last words struck me. I had misunderstood his actions so much. I thought he had wanted to torture me—to get back at me for spending so much time with Cedric. I thought he had changed his mind…had stopped loving me.

It was painful to know I had been so wrong about him.

"Are you all right?" he asked. He could see the pain in my features. He looked concerned—it reinforced the knowledge that I had misjudged him. Wow, I really wasn't a very good judge of character, was I?

I nodded weakly. "I just…I had no idea that's how you felt."

He noticed immediately when tears began to threaten to fall from my eyes and he got up quickly from his seat.

"Whoa, hey, stop that," he said, coming over to sit next to me and placing his arm gingerly around my shoulders. "What are you crying for?"

"I was…I was just so hurt…I thought you hated me. I thought you had chosen her over me…that you…didn't love me any more."

Grief washed over Fred's features and I felt his arm tighten around me.

"What? Jules—Merlin—I…I can't believe—wow, I'm _so_ sorry."

I sniffled and he pulled my face into his chest.

"I can't believe you thought that. Jules, I could never, _ever_ stop loving you."

"It seemed like you did."

"I know. I treated you horribly…I just, got so caught up in trying to get over you. I couldn't stand watching you and Cedric. You seemed so…happy with him…so alive. I hated that I couldn't feel the same way about someone else, so I lashed out at you. It was wrong…I hate myself for it."

I sniffled again and he stroked my hair.

"I thought, maybe…by making you feel miserable it would make me feel better for how miserable you were making me. I know that's wrong…but do you understand?"

"I was making you miserable?" I asked weakly. It felt strange, having this all hit home so hard. This had been his fault after all, but I was suddenly feeling very responsible. Like if only I had known better then none of this would have happened. Of course it was ridiculous, the logical side of me knew that, but the illogical, emotional side of me was just upset that I had hurt Fred—that I had hurt my best friend.

"Not on purpose Jules, and that's the difference—even though I was hurting because of you, I was the one who went out of my way to make you feel bad…this is all _my_ fault. You didn't do anything wrong…you never did anything wrong."

He continued to stroke my hair, soothing me.

"Everything has been my fault. Even tonight. It shouldn't have been you seeking me out to get this thing all figured out. I should have been the one coming to _you_ to apologize."

I nodded into the fabric of his shirt. I knew he was right—this had been his fault. I didn't have any problem admitting that earlier, but now, with all of his true feelings laid out in front of me, I couldn't help but feel that I could have handled this a little better.

When I didn't respond verbally, Fred continued on, surely grateful to get everything out in the open.

"It took me a long time before I was able to understand how much happier Cedric was making you. I could see it in your eyes, in your face. He cares about you almost as much as I do, I think…but he probably shows it a lot better than I ever did. When I saw how happy he made you it made it easier to…move on."

I gave a start. He had moved on? With Angelina? That couldn't be right. I waited for him to continue, sure that I had missed something.

"At first I couldn't stop thinking about you when I was with Ang…but she put up with me really well. It actually helped a lot to have her to talk to. I feel bad for putting her through all of this…but now, she makes me happy. And I think I make her happy too."

_Wait a second, what?!_

He was worried about what he had put _Angelina_ through?! There had to be some mistake…I spoke up, voicing my thoughts.

"But what about that day…when she went running to you telling you I said all of those things…those horrible, awful—"

Fred cut me off. I was sitting up straight now, out of shock that he was still committed to the awful girl who had made up those lies about me…in order to tear us apart. How could he still be with someone that manipulative…that horrible?

He smiled just a little bit, throwing me off even further.

"You don't have to worry about that. I've gotten past it, I'm not mad. I know how badly I treated you and Cedric. I know it doesn't justify it…but if the situation had been reversed, I would have acted the exact same that you did."

I was instantly confused. _What in the name of Merlin was he talking about?_

"We were both mad at each other. I know you didn't mean it. Besides, I did a lot worse things to you…I deserved a little backlash."

I stared at him uncomprehending for another moment before it clicked.

He thought it was true.

He thought Angelina had been telling the truth—that I really had said that load of rubbish to her.

My mind flickered for a moment, trying to figure out why he hadn't discovered the truth. I had told George hadn't I?

No…no I hadn't. I had never breached the topic to George, thus, Fred had never found out the truth. If he had surely he wouldn't be with her anymore. I honestly believed Fred cared about me enough not to stay with someone who treated me as awful as Angelina did.

I opened my mouth to say something—to clear up all of the confusion—but Fred stopped me.

"I know you don't like her, Jules, and I'm fine with that…heck, I'm not Diggory's biggest fan either. But she really does make me happy."

He paused, and I watched a twinkle dance in his eyes. He did look happy. I scowled.

"So I'll make you a deal," he suggested, "I'll be nice to Diggory if you try to be nice to Angelina."

I stared at him slightly slack-jawed. I was at a loss for words. All I had to do was tell him what had actually happened that day between Angelina and I and he would break up with her—I was sure of it. All it would take was one little explanation to make the entire horrible relationship that I despised just…disappear.

That's all it would take…and I couldn't do it.

I faked a smile, trying to look as happy as possible. "It's a deal."

Fred grinned at me suddenly throwing his arms in a tight hug around my body. I could feel his enthusiasm—his glee—behind this hug. He was happy. He had his best friend back, and he had his new girl…he was ecstatic…

And even after all he had put me through…after the lies, the hurt, the heartache…I just couldn't bring myself to take it away from him.

--

I never got around to telling the twins about my game plan for getting back Cedric and his friends. Actually, I never even got around to telling them that the three of the Hufflepuff boys were the _actual_ culprits behind the underwear prank so many years ago.

It didn't register too high on my importance metre right now anyway. I'm certain Charlie and Bill wouldn't mind holding the blame for just a little while longer. It's not like it was going to be brought up around either of them any time soon.

Too distracted by my conversation with Fred to even focus on anything else, I had left immediately from the boys' dormitory to head up to my own for bed. Fred and I had missed dinner due to our reconciliation, and although he had asked me to accompany him down to the kitchens, I wasn't feeling at all hungry enough to go.

I lay on my own for several hours before I heard the footsteps of Katie and Alicia at the doorway. I assumed Angelina would be down in the common room with Fred now that I knew they were still together.

"Jules? Have you been up here the entire time?" Katie asked as she and Alicia entered the room.

"We've been wondering where you were. Cedric was looking for you," Alicia said as she flopped down on her bed nearest mine.

The girls tugged at their ponytails and undid their school ties. I didn't answer either of them, staring up at the ceiling above my head. I was far too deep in thought to bother myself with usual conversation.

"Juliet? Are you feeling all right?" Katie asked. I could see from the corner of my eye that she was staring at me anxiously. There must have been something in my expression that worried her.

"I'm fine," I assured her, pursing my lips in thought, "I made up with Fred today."

"What?" they said simultaneously. They were clearly shocked by the news, although they shouldn't have been.

"Didn't you see me go upstairs to talk with him?" I asked, still not removing my gaze from directly above my head.

"Yes, of course," Alicia said, "But we just assumed you were at each other's throats again."

"Didn't George tell you?" I asked, only mildly interested as to why the girls were so shocked.

"No, in fact, he assured us you two were fighting again," Katie answered.

I rolled my eyes again. "Of course he did." Anything to stir trouble, that one.

"So what happened?" Katie asked. Her voice was further away now—from the bathroom.

"Nothing really," I replied, "We just talked—we made up."

"You _what_?!" Katie squealed. She sounded horrified.

"Made UP, Kates," Alicia told her, picking up on her mishearing.

"Oh…I thought…well, you know," Katie said sheepishly as she re-emerged from the bathroom in her pyjamas. Merlin the girl was fast.

Alicia snickered at her and opened her mouth—surely to ask for more details—when the dormitory door creaked open.

Immediately our conversation stopped, as we knew there was only one other person who was expected to join us tonight. The same unwelcome guest who always joined us.

"Hi guys," Angelina said cheerfully. She was trying too hard. We all knew she was putting on an act.

An unenthusiastic 'Mmm' and a half-assed wave was all she received as acknowledgement as she walked through the room. Neither Katie nor Alicia had forgiven her for what she had done to me. The fact made me a little smug. Angelina was definitely an outsider here.

She cleared her throat uncomfortably, although the hostility was something she had grown accustomed to. This was normal by now.

"Juliet, could I talk to you for a minute?"

I was a little surprised at first that she wanted to speak with me, but it wore off in less than a second. Of course she wanted to talk to me. She had probably been talking to Fred about what had happened between us earlier. Maybe she wanted to yell at me some more—make up more ridiculous bullshit.

"No, I'd rather not," I replied casually, not moving from my comfortable spot on the bed.

"Please?" she asked. It was odd to hear her ask politely like that. It almost sounded genuine…like she actually had something important to say.

I sat up, allowing annoyance to colour my features.

"Fine, go ahead, talk," I said, gesturing for her to continue.

"Right here?" she asked, eyeing Alicia and Katie warily. They were staring up at her from their own beds in suspicious interest.

"Why not? You want to talk, go for it," I replied.

"Ehm…Ok," she said uncomfortably. "I uh…was just talking to Fred."

_Bingo. Like I didn't already know that._

"And he told me that you two er…sorted things out."

I shrugged, "Sure."

"And I just wanted to know…why..."

"Why what?" I asked, allowing my impatience to show through.

"Why you didn't rat me out…you know, about before, when I told Fred you said I wasn't good enough for him?" her face was questioning, but also clearly confused and astonished. I smirked at that. She knew she didn't deserve my covering her ass.

Katie and Alicia threw me questioning looks. Obviously this had not been what they expected. They knew how much I hated Angelina. It must have puzzled them just as much as it did her that I would keep the truth from Fred. It would make her look terrible. She'd lose him in an instant.

"You're asking me why. Why I didn't tell Fred what a complete scumbag you are and let him break up with you like he should?" my tone was menacing—I could see the discomfort in Angelina's eyes.

She bit her bottom lip. "Well, yeah. I thought for sure you would have."

"I almost did," I admitted.

She looked at the ground. "Well, I wanted to thank you for not telling him. I know if you had have told him the truth, he would have left me. He cares too much about you. If he knew—"

I cut her off. I already knew all of this. "I didn't do it for you Ang, so shut it."

"Well then why—"

"I did it because for some inexplicable reason you make him happy…and no matter how much you deserved it, no matter how much I despise you…I love him to much to take that happiness away from him," I said.

I could sense Katie and Alicia's eyes widen. Angelina looked shocked. I knew no one had expected this—no one had expected my reasoning, and honestly, even I found it hard to believe. After all Fred had put me through, it should have been easy to tell him the truth and let him be hurt by Angelina. Even more, it should have been easy for me to make Angelina miserable after what she had done for me. But none of it outweighed how I felt for Fred. I wanted him to be happy, regardless of all else.

Angelina breathed in deeply before she spoke again. "Well, I still want to thank you, even if you didn't do it for me. And I want to apologize for the lies I made up about you. I was wrong…I was just angry that Fred was suffering so much over you. I'm sorry."

She took another breath and began to ready herself for bed, changing out of her school uniform.

I leaned my head back down on my pillow to stare up at the ceiling again as I spoke.

"I promised Fred I'd try to be nice to you while we're all together. But just for the record—if you didn't make him happy, I'd have ripped your head off by now."

--

Despite all of the anger and hatred stewing the room when I went to sleep, I managed a fairly peaceful night…although I had had the strangest dream…I just couldn't seem to remember it.

I woke up in the morning and stretched out my limbs—unwilling to open my eyes to the sun filtering into the room just yet. It felt good to stretch, as if I had been cramped up in a small space while I slept.

I deep yawn escaped my mouth, followed by a strange noise from the back of my throat. The noise jolted me—sending my eyes flying open in shock.

What was that?

A _purr_?

I panicked, looking down at myself quickly in shock…only to find that my body wasn't there.

I let out a strange strangled yelp and I felt a bizarre sensation moving all across the surface of my body. My hair—or rather, my fur—was standing on end.

Terrified, I jumped from my bed, landing clumsily on four padded feet. My balance was off, and I stumbled, my face landing flat on the cold stone floor.

What the hell had happened to me?

I could feel claws scratching at the stone floor beneath my feet…_my_ claws…_my_ furry little feet.

I looked down, suddenly mystified, staring at my paws in wonder rather than feeling the terror that had overcome me just moments ago.

I flexed my toes, letting the claws stretch out and scratch the stone underneath me. The feeling was bizarre and unknown—it was brand new and very, very strange.

I took a breath and tried to clear my thoughts, feeling very overwhelmed by all the new feelings. I was hyperaware of the sounds around me…I could hear in extreme clarity the deep, calm breathing of three people still asleep. My eyesight was crystal clear. The details of my vision were absolutely astonishing. I could see every wrinkle in the fabric on my four-poster, and every strand of Katie's golden-blonde hair from where it dangled off the edge of her bed at the other side of the room.

My nose was picking up stronger scents as well. I could easily smell the scent of myself—my human self—on the sheet that dangled just above my head, as well as the smell of the shampoo and body wash I had used still lingering on the covers. Beyond that I could also smell the different fragrances coming from the other inhabitants of the room. Katie was a fan of the mango body wash, and Alicia liked the strawberry shampoo.

Odd…everything was so enhanced, and yet I also felt so constricted.

This body was like a cage, one too small to hold me properly. I felt trapped and very wrong.

I tried to concentrate, focussing on the practice McGonagall had put me under while trying to prepare my mind for this. Maybe if I were able to control my mind properly I would be able to change back into me. Otherwise I'd have to run to McGonagall in this form and hope I didn't get trampled along the way.

I focussed, forcing all of my energy into imagining me changing from my cat form back into my human self. I pictured myself transforming with as much detail as I could imagine. I had seen McGonagall do it before, so I knew roughly what it would look like. I put an incredible amount of effort into forming the human me in my mind. The exact length and shade of my hair, my height, the colour of my eyes, the light freckles on my skin, the clothes I had been wearing when I went to bed…

And suddenly…I was human again.

I looked down at myself in astonishment and wide-eyed wonder. I had done it. I had changed myself into a cat and then back again.

Unable to control myself I let out a squeal of joy followed by a loud peal of laughter. I was euphoric. McGonagall had been wrong. She had predicted I'd be ready by the first of January, and here I was—not even Christmas yet and I had already done it!

I heard the others stirring awake after my minor explosion and I immediately bolted out of the door. I wasn't of sound mind enough to make up a suitable story for why I was so excited at six in the morning on a Saturday.

I hurried down the stairs and out the common room door, headed straight for McGonagall's office.

I didn't even worry about the fact that I was in my pyjamas.

--

**A/N:** Again, I'm in agreement with all of the Cedric-should-stay-cannon-and-be-killed-by-Voldy supporters. My reasoning is basically the same as yours. I know Juliet and Cedric are so close that it would be very difficult to separate them at this point. I was just interested in how many people wanted him to live—because I think I could make it work if that's what the readers wanted. Otherwise I'm still going through with the original plan (even if it tears Juliet—and me—up inside).


	16. A Plan in Motion

**A/N:** Cedric's fate is just about sealed. So if you haven't voted in the poll make your way over there and cast your vote! It's greatly appreciated—I like getting your feedback.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER SIXTEEN --**

_A Plan in Motion_

McGonagall was surprised (to say the least) when I demonstrated for her what I could do. I had caught on quite quickly, able to transform myself on my own straight away after the first incident. McGonagall was impressed. She didn't even mind that I had come charging into her classroom without even dressing myself properly.

Of course, she wasn't exactly _pleased_ to see that I hadn't even bothered to get dressed. Her disapproval was evident, although I could tell she was trying to hide her amusement. She doesn't fool me. I know McG thinks I'm hilarious…me _and_ the twins. She just would never admit it.

Of course, after my first demonstration of what I could do, she encouraged me to stay with her for several hours, practicing the transformation to ensure I could do it without causing any injury to myself.

I was amazed at how easy it was. I didn't find it complicated at all. I had been sure I would find it a little difficult to handle, but it wasn't stressful in the slightest. Once I had managed to get past the enhanced senses but constricted human abilities, I felt much more comfortable in my cat form.

It didn't even bother me that I had to spend the majority of my Saturday sitting with Professor McGonagall. My friends were probably all wondering where I had run off to, and I'm sure Cedric was worried. From his point of view I'd been missing since dinner last night.

It was well worth it when I finally broke free from McGonagall's classroom at around three o'clock in the afternoon. My stomach was rumbling after having missed both breakfast and lunch (even though McG had provided me with some biscuits to tide me over), but my hunger was nothing compared to the euphoria I felt at having finally completed the Animagus process.

To say I was psyched was an understatement. The only problem was, I would have to calm myself down so as to not raise suspicion. The whole reason I had been excited in the first place was the fact that I would be able to sneak around undetected. I would be kicking myself if I let my excitement get out of control to the point that it would raise curiosity.

Nearly as soon as Professor McGonagall had let me go from her office I began sprinting down the corridors toward Gryffindor tower. Although I was definitely planning on keeping this a secret, I needed to tell _someone_ about it—of course, since Fred and George were the only two who knew about the procedure, they were the ones I was going to tell. I just had to get them alone.

I didn't make it very far as I sped toward Gryffindor tower, as I ran straight into Cedric. He had seen me and stopped, but I hadn't even noticed him. I ended up nearly toppling over as I crashed into him. He caught me from falling just in time.

"Juliet," he said, shock written all over his face, "What are you doing? And where have you been? No one's seen you in ages."

I looked up at him sheepishly, feeling momentarily sorry that I had caused him so much worry. I thought fast, needing an excuse.

"I didn't feel well last night so I went to bed without dinner…sorry I didn't tell you," I said, smiling apologetically. He looked a little upset that no one had told him I was sick, so I tacked a "Missed you," on at the end.

"You weren't at breakfast or lunch either…are you feeling all right now?" he asked, putting his hand to my forehead. He looked concerned.

"I'm perfect now—other than the fact that I'm completely famished."

As if to illustrate my point, my stomach rumbled loudly.

"I guess you would be if you skipped three meals in a row," he said smirking.

He didn't look suspicious—good.

"Yeah."

"But if you were sick all morning, why weren't you up in your dormitory? Katie said you weren't there…"

I thought up an excuse at lightning speed. "I felt awful when I first woke up, so I went down to the hospital wing this morning. Madam Pomfrey gave me some potion—cleared the sickness right up, only it knocked me out for a few hours. I've only just woken up."

I grinned, feeling impressed at my quick thinking.

"Well I'm glad you're feeling better—you certainly look all right…other than the fact that you're in your pyjamas."

I looked down at myself, suddenly remembering I hadn't changed from the morning. I blushed a deep shade of red, feeling completely ridiculous.

"Oh…that's right…I forgot."

My blush deepened as Cedric grinned at me.

"I'm guessing you're heading back to Gryffindor now," he asked with a smirk.

"Well, I was just going to go get George and Fred and grab something to eat—after I change that is."

This sentence caught him by surprise.

"George _and_ Fred?" he asked.

I shrugged sheepishly, "Yeah."

"Since when has it been George _and_ Fred again?" he questioned. He didn't look angry or upset, so I answered him.

"Not long," I told him, "George insisted that we start getting along again—it's pretty much a trial run."

It wasn't exactly the truth, but I really didn't want to get into all the nitty gritty details of what had happened during the conversation between Fred and me. It wasn't something I really felt comfortable reliving. It was in the past now.

"Hmm," Cedric said, pondering that. "Where are you going to be getting something to eat?"

I bit my lip. I don't know if I had ever told Cedric about how much I knew about the castle. The fact that I was best friends with the twins should have tipped him off to the fact that I knew more than most.

"The kitchens," I responded casually.

He shook his head and grinned. "Of course. I should have guessed."

"Want to join us?" I asked, mostly trying to be polite. As much as I loved spending time with Cedric, I really wanted to get the twins alone for a few minutes.

He shook his head. "Nah, if this friendship between you and Fred is a trial thing, I'm not sure I want to be around when it blows up. Remember the last time?"

I smirked up at him as he took my hand and began walking with me back to the tower. "Worried he'll blast your head off or something?" I teased.

He scowled at me. "I could take him."

"Well then why are you so scared?" I joked, giving him a nudge.

"I don't think it's wise of me to provoke him while you two are on the mend. It might cause a setback," he told me.

I smiled at him. He truly was amazing. I knew he didn't like Fred—especially after the way he had treated me—but he was still willing to give me my space in order to make it better between us.

"You're amazing," I said, unable to keep the stupid grin from forming on my face.

He returned my smile. "And so are you."

He bent down and kissed my lips gently, his hand stroking my cheek as he did. We had stopped moving. I hadn't realized we were at the tower already.

Cedric pulled away and the stupid grin found its way back onto my face. At least it masked my excitement over becoming an Animagus. Maybe everyone would think my giddiness was all Cedric's doing.

"I'll see you later?" he asked.

"Of course," I told him.

He kissed my cheek once more and headed off in the opposite direction.

My excitement kicked in once again and I burst through the portrait door, scanning the room for my friends.

Fred, George, Lee, and Angelina were all in the room. Katie and Alicia weren't there, but it didn't matter at the moment. The only two I needed were the twins.

"Fred, George!" I called, waving to them from the door. I didn't want Lee to hear the word _kitchens_ and want to join us.

They both gave me identical confused glances, but I could tell from George's expression that he was pleased that _both_ of them had been called.

When neither of them budged I waved them over frantically once more. "Come here," I said urgently.

They shrugged at Angelina and Lee and made their way over to me warily.

I rolled my eyes at them, "Would you two please hurry up?"

"What's going on?" George asked when they had reached me.

"Wanna go down to the kitchens with me?" I asked quietly, to ensure Lee—who was eavesdropping—wouldn't be able to hear.

They quirked their eyebrows at me.

"The kitchens? That's what's so important?" Fred asked.

"I'm starving," I said, "But I need to talk to you two in private."

They glanced at each other and then back at me, their eyes wide. Maybe they had guessed what I was going to tell them.

My stomach rumbled again.

"Coming?" I asked.

"Sure, but uh, don't you want to change first?" George asked, pointing down at my wardrobe choice.

I blushed again. How did I manage to forget about my pyjamas twice in five minutes? Damn that Cedric and his ability to sidetrack me.

"Right, I'll be back in a jiff."

--

_George Weasley_

"Okay, so what was this huge event you needed to talk to us privately about?" I asked, staring at Juliet warily. She seemed oddly excited about something. I felt like maybe I should know what this was all about, but she had me mystified.

The three of us took our spots on our usual stools. The house elves had already rushed away to fill our orders. For once Juliet had ordered more than either Fred or me. I guess missing three meals in a row can do that to a person.

"Well, two things actually," she replied, practically bouncing in her seat with uncontrolled excitement.

Fred sent me a questioning glance, thinking maybe I knew something about this. I shrugged at him in response. He may have been on the outskirts recently, but that didn't mean I was more likely to know what on earth she was talking about. Sometimes she was far too nonsensical for anyone to understand her.

"One has to do with me, and the other involves all three of us. Which do you want to hear about first?" she asked, glancing back and forth between Fred and me.

I rolled my eyes at her. Fred and me did have other things to attend to…I guess she had forgotten we were still attempting to get our rightful winnings from Ludo Bagman. She'd been a little distracted lately, so I'd give her a pass. But we'd been in the middle of planning what to write in our next letter to him when she interrupted us.

"Let's hear yours first," Fred decided.

Juliet jumped down from her stool enthusiastically, just as one of the house elves came rushing back to deliver our food. The tiny little elf placed it on the table in front of me and I eyed my selection of pastries hungrily.

"Mine it is," She said. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," Fred replied. She had his undivided attention—not much had changed there, even after the feud. I was much more concentrated on the chocolate cake. I picked it up and took a huge bite.

"George! Are you watching?" she asked.

I turned toward her. "Sure, sure," I said, spewing cake crumbs all over Fred. He didn't notice—his eyes were trained on Juliet.

"Good," she said, grinning.

She closed her eyes, and then reopened her left eye again to make sure we were still watching her. She clamped it shut once more.

I kept my eyes on her, curious now, as I munched on my cake, and within a second, she had vanished.

I spat the cake out of my mouth in complete shock as I jumped down from my stool. It landed on my shoe, but I hardly noticed.

"What happened?!" I asked. "Where did she go?"

I looked behind me stupidly, expecting her to jump up behind me. Obviously she wasn't there, but where on earth did she go?

I panicked, looking at Fred for support, but to my complete shock, Fred was laughing! He looked gleeful. Here I was feeling mortified and frightened that our best friend had disappeared into thin air, and he was laughing like it was the greatest thing he had ever seen!

"Where did she go?!" I moved around the table and heard a loud mewing noise—it sounded painful—and I realized I had stepped on something. I looked down just in time to see an angry cat hissing up at me from my feet.

Then an instant later, Juliet was back rubbing her hand with an angry expression on her face.

"Bloody hell George! That hurt!" she yelled, smacking me with her good hand.

I stared at her, confusion etched on my features as well as swimming in my head. It took me a minute to catch up to what had taken place, and then I was screaming like a little girl and lifting her up by her waist.

"You did it! I can't believe it! You're a cat!" I screamed.

"Merlin George, put me down!" she protested. I guess she wasn't happy that I stepped on her paw.

"That was brilliant, Jules!" Fred applauded. He was on his feet too, hugging her from the other side.

Even through the excitement of Juliet's success, I couldn't help but feel wonderful because the three of us had been reunited again.

"I can't believe you did it!" I screamed again.

"You can't?" Juliet still wasn't amused. I looked down at her hand and saw that it was red. Her fingers were moving so it didn't look like I had broken anything.

"Oh Jules, you know what I mean—you finished a lot sooner than I would have thought possible," I explained. I was still grinning but I took her sore hand in mine to sooth her.

"Well you didn't have to freak out and step on my hand," she said angrily, allowing me to massage her fingers.

I smirked at her. "Love you Jules."

"Uh huh," she said, still unamused.

"That was absolutely brilliant," Fred commented as the three of us split from our group hug.

She turned and grinned at him. "Thanks, Fred."

"Will you do it again?" he asked. Excitement was still gleaming in his eyes—a lot like Juliet's, and probably mine too actually.

"In a minute," she said, "I still have something else to tell you guys…actually my being a cat might help us with it."

The confusion had risen again. I had forgotten there was a second thing she wanted to talk to us about.

"What is it?" I asked.

She took a breath and tried to hold back a smile. At least we knew it was something amusing. I didn't know if I could handle any more shock today.

"Ok, well I'm guessing you guys remember the underwear-in-the-tree incident from years back…" she said.

I grimaced. How could I forget that? Bloody Bill and Charlie putting our underwear in the trees for the entire world to see. They should have known better than to mess with us. The three of us had messed with their heads so much since then—all because of that one distasteful prank.

Fred let out a chuckle. "Yeah, of course we remember it."

I nodded in response, still reliving the horror of that day. Although I will admit, Juliet's screams were oddly satisfying. She was quite hilarious to watch as she frantically tried to beat Bill with her hands. Needless to say there wasn't a bruise on him after that encounter.

"Yeah well, new information about that day has recently been brought to my attention," she said through clenched teeth.

"What are you talking about?" I asked her. Fred was wearing an equally confused expression.

She took a sip from the glass sitting in front of her, swallowing loudly.

"It wasn't your brothers who played that little joke on us," she said calmly.

Fred and I exchanged glances.

"What?" I asked.

"Then who was it?"

She took a deep breath as if she were mentally trying to prepare for what was coming next. I found it odd—obviously she already knew who the culprit was.

"It was Cedric," she said, "Cedric, Codie, and Ethan."

"What?!" Fred asked. Clearly he was surprised.

I, on the other hand, saw the connections immediately. _That_ was why Bill and Charlie were so inexplicably innocent-sounding when we accused them of the monstrosity. Plus, Cedric did live quite close to the Burrow.

"Huh," was all I managed to say as I put the pieces together. "Makes sense. Although I must admit, I didn't think Diggory would have it in him."

Fred nodded in agreement, and I could see the wheels turning in his brain as he ran through the occurrence in his head.

Juliet waited patiently as we digested the information.

"So what are we going to do about it?" I asked. I knew Julie wouldn't have told us unless she intended to get the pranksters back. If she hadn't wanted to seek revenge, she wouldn't have told us that her boyfriend stuck our underwear in a tree once upon a time.

"I haven't gotten that far quite yet," she said, "But I was thinking the only way to get back at someone for putting your underwear on display is to—"

"Put theirs on display," Fred concluded.

"Exactly," Julie said, "Only, since we're at school, we'll cause them a lot more embarrassment than they did with only your family around."

I grinned at her.

"Okay I was wrong," Fred said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Juliet asked.

"He hasn't changed you—Cedric I mean—you're still one of us," he said, and I could see the happiness in his eyes as he said it.

She grinned back at him.

"So how are we going to do this?" I questioned.

"Well we've got some time to think," Juliet said, "I was thinking we should wait until we can create the most embarrassment possible."

"When will that be?" I asked.

"Again, I haven't figured it out that far…but we've got me able to transform into an inconspicuous cat, so…now all we need is a big event…"

"A big event?" Fred said, "With the Triwizard Tournament going on? Piece of cake."

"A feast…or something that everyone will be sure to attend," she said.

"Why do we have to wait for a big event for that? Everyone in Hogwarts goes to dinner—plus we've got the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students here. We could pick any old night and have it a success," I said.

Juliet's eyes lit up in realization. "You're right."

"Of course I am."

"So we just have to pick a day," she said, "And make sure when I sneak into Hufflepuff the guys aren't around. Plus I'll need you two close enough to help me carry everything out with me…and then we'll have to get everything set up before they notice their clothes are missing…"

"Ok, so we've got a lot of planning to do," Fred concluded.

"It's a good thing we're experts," Juliet said with a sly grin, sticking her fist out in front of her.

"We're the best of the best," Fred agreed, meeting Juliet's fist with his own.

"The essence of brilliance," I concluded, my hand joining the circle.

Juliet looked down.

"Is that cake on your shoe?"

My grin didn't falter. "Yeah."

She shrugged. "Alright then."

--

**A/N:** This was quite a short chapter, but I didn't feel much like including anything more in it. The next one will be a long one and infinitely more exciting. We'll be seeing more of George's point of view in the next chapter as well, along with Juliet's of course. Please take the time to leave me a review! When the next chapter goes up depends on how many reviews I get for this chapter.


	17. Game On

**A/N:** This might be the last chapter for a while. School starts in a couple of days and I'm in the process of moving. I'll write again next time I get a chance. I'm not sure how long it'll take me to settle in and get used to things, but I'll do my best to get another chapter up soon.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**-- CHAPTER SEVENTEEN--**

_Game On_

_George Weasley_

A week into December (long after Fred and I had yet again failed to receive a decent answer out of Bagman about our payment) the entire population of Hogwarts was surprised with the news of an upcoming event.

We were seated in Transfiguration class—our very last class of the day—and the lesson had just been wrapped up. Of course, I hadn't been taking any notice that McGonagall was teaching us anything useful at all. I had found that flinging wads of mushed up Bertie Beans into Alicia's hair was a much more captivating activity. The way the goop stuck in her locks was absolutely perfect. It really was an art form in itself the way I managed to toss the junk into her hair without her noticing…ahh, simply satisfying.

If you're thinking that chewing and throwing candy at someone for the entire class would get a little repetitive—you're wrong.

I snickered to myself as a particularly large wad of popcorn flavoured bean landed inconspicuously in Alicia's honey brown locks. She had taken absolutely no notice of my hobby for the entirety of the class (I credited this entirely to my professional throwing techniques). She would go completely bonkers when she discovered it later on.

I glanced over at Fred to share my success with him, only to find that he was staring off into space…or so it seemed. Upon further investigation it became quite clear that he was staring at the back of Juliet's head.

Heh. _Over her_ my hairy arse.

I kicked him hard in the shin.

He gave a start and turned to me in surprise. I glared at him.

He sent me a questioning look, which I returned with a _don't-think-I-don't-know-what-you're-doing_ glance. He rolled his eyes at me and rubbed his shin, turning to face the front of the class—or rather, turning to continue to memorize every strand of Juliet's hair.

I smacked my head down on the desk in front of me in frustration. How many times do I have to tell him? He was supposed to be moving on from Juliet, not obsessing over her!

What good was it going to do anyone if he continued to long for her in secrecy? Absolutely no good for anyone. All that was going to accomplish would be to dig him further into the hole he's gotten himself into.

I guess I don't give the bugger much credit. He _had_ been improving in the Juliet area. He stepped up and took the blame for what had happened, he let her know it was okay for her to move on…he even pretended to be okay with all of it. Sure, credit was owed to my freckle-faced twin, but it would help him feel a lot less miserable if he stopped daydreaming about her and focused on moving on with his life.

_Sigh_.

I let out a deep groan at the thought of my love-struck brother and pounded my head lightly on the desk once again.

"Is there a problem Mr. Weasley?"

I looked up in surprise at the sound of McGonagall addressing me. I noticed several heads had turned in my direction in curiosity. Of course, I had no clue as to what I had missed during my head-slamming, so I continued to stare up at the professor with a glazed-over expression.

"I would have thought you would enjoy the prospect of a Ball," she said, "You don't seem very interested in school work…or is it only defiling Miss Spinnet's outfit that amuses you?" she asked sternly.

Alicia's head snapped around and she glared at me, instantly suspicious of what I had done this time. Fortunately she failed to notice the candy now leaving a trail down the back of her robes.

I shrugged at Alicia, feigning innocence and met McG's penetrating gaze. I swear I could see a small inkling of a smile make its way onto her pursed lips, and I grinned back at her triumphantly.

"What was it you said?" I questioned, "A Ball?"

"That is correct Mr. Weasley," she said, continuing where she had left off. "It is traditional for a Yule Ball to take place during the Christmas break of the school year."

I heard several of the females in the classroom begin to chatter excitedly under their breaths. I laughed aloud.

"A _dance_?" I asked loudly.

"Yes Mr. Weasley," McGonagall said, staring at me sternly (still trying not to smile I think). "The Yule Ball is a dance."

"Blimey. Who would want to go to a dance?" I said, leaning back in my seat. Lee and Fred, as well as a few other blokes in the room, nodded in agreement.

"The Yule Ball gives students a chance to interact with the other schools in a _laid back_ environment. It's a chance for everyone to…to let their hair down, so to speak," she continued.

I laughed outright once more. Surely McGonagall had never let her hair down in her entire life. She met my gaze again, pursing her lips, but tilted her head as if to say 'I'll give you that one'. I grinned.

"The Champions and their partners will open the dance—"

I caught Juliet sending a frightened look over at Alicia (probably horrified by the idea of Cedric asking her to this ball thing) and she immediately noticed the goop in her friends' hair.

She turned around to grin evilly at me. I grinned back at her, and she turned back around to face McGonagall without alerting Alicia of the problem.

_That's my girl._

"The rest of you merely have to show up—properly dressed—and I expect you all to be on your best behaviour. You will be representing Gryffindor house—"

The end of class bell rang, and everyone jumped up from their seats, not bothering to allow McGonagall to finish her speech. I'm sure I know how it would have ended anyway: _'as such I wish for you to be on your best behaviour…that means __**you**__ Weasleys. Furthermore I advise you all to refrain from trying to look better than Mr. George Weasley on the night of the ball, as it will be utterly impossible… yattah, yattah, yattah…Why, I'd ask to go with him myself if it weren't against school policy…'_

"Well that sounds completely ridiculous," Lee mumbled as we hurried out of the classroom. Fred and I extended our agreements before I felt something tugging on the back of my robes.

I turned around to see what it was and was met by Juliet's devilish grin.

"What's up?" I asked her. Fred had turned around too.

"Tonight's the night," she whispered so that no one else could hear.

"Tonight?" Fred asked.

"While everyone else is at dinner," she said, "we go through with step one of the plan."

I grinned down at her as she slipped her arms through both mine and Fred's.

"And then?" I asked.

"While everyone's still in bed, we go through with step two," she said simply.

Fred exchanged an excited look with me.

"Wicked."

"I'll be inside Hufflepuff tonight before dinner. I'll meet you guys outside the entrance once the coast is clear," she said, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

Fred and I grinned down at her conspiratorially.

"How—"

"_GEORGE WEASLEY!_"

All three of our heads turned to see Alicia glaring at me with such intensity that I swear her eyes turned red and steam shot from her ears.

My eyes widened—she looked kind of terrifying.

"I'm going to _kill you_!"

"I think that's my cue to leave," I said, and without bothering to say goodbye, I sprinted off in the opposite direction of Gryffindor Tower, hearing Alicia's angry wails and hurried footsteps right behind me.

--

Juliet's job was certainly harder than both mine and Fred's put together. It was her responsibility to camp out next to the Hufflepuff entrance after classes in order to sneak herself into the common room. Next she had to wait inside until all of the Hufflepuff students had left for dinner. I figure she was in there for a solid two hours before Fred and I even had to go meet her.

This prank was pretty much all in Julie's hands. She had told us what she was going to do, and instructed us to meet her at the Hufflepuff entrance as soon as dinner commenced. I assumed she had all of the details worked out in the pretty little head of hers, because Fred and I certainly hadn't given it too much thought. For what was quite possibly the first time, Juliet was the leader of the prank and we were her tag-alongs. It was a strange situation.

"Do you think everyone's left for dinner?" Fred asked me as the two of us made our way quietly and quickly to where we knew Hufflepuff was located.

I shrugged, "Probably. And if not, we'll just have to make sure they don't—or can't—say anything to ruin the fun."

Fred snickered, probably imagining detaching some poor Hufflepuff's mouth from the rest of their face. In fact, he was probably imagining doing it to Diggory—it would stop him from kissing Juliet. I must admit, I'm fairly impressed Fred hasn't stooped to that level quite yet. Even I've had my share of troubles getting past the two of them together.

I'll be the first to admit I'm a little over protective of Julie.

I flirted with the thought of pitching the deforming-Diggory idea to Fred as the two of us made it to the Hufflepuff portrait door. Juliet was there (which is just as well, because I was beginning to feel intrigued by my idea and was half-sure I would hex Diggory if I saw him) in her human form, which meant she had already ensured the coast was clear to continue.

"Wobbleboppers," she said to the portrait, and it swung open invitingly. It had also been Juliet's job to overhear what the password was.

The three of us slipped into the yellow-clad common room, suppressing our already building giddiness. This was going to be too sweet.

"Which room is theirs?" I asked, scanning the area quickly. It wasn't an unpleasant space, although it wasn't nearly as homey as Gryffindor was. The pale yellow furniture was a little bland, but it beat the Slytherin common room (which we had also visited at one point in time during a prank).

Juliet gestured for us to follow her as she led us up a flight of stairs at the far end of the room. The stairs went up several levels and it wasn't until we reached the last one that she pushed her way through a door on the left-hand side.

"With nearly two hours to waste waiting around for everyone to leave I had plenty of time to do some exploration," she explained as the three of us hurried inside.

"Do you know whose stuff is who's?" I asked, surveying the clutter. I wasn't sure how well Juliet knew Cedric's wardrobe, but I doubted Fred or I would be able to distinguish one bloke's wardrobe from another's. We had a hard enough time figuring out which of our clothing belonged to me and which were his.

She scrunched up her face, shaking her head no.

"That trunk is Cedric's," she said, pointing to the one next to the bed furthest from the door. "There's a golden egg in there so I'm thinking it's a pretty safe bet."

"And the other two?" Fred asked.

She shrugged. "Couldn't tell you which ones belong to Codie and Ethan."

This time Fred and I shrugged.

"What's one more person's underwear?" I asked with an evil grin.

Juliet returned the smile. "I never liked Vince much anyway," she said.

"Excellent," Fred announced as the three of us automatically began to get to work.

Juliet seemed the most hesitant (although this prank had been her idea) about touching the guys' underwear. She was rummaging through Cedric's trunk, and I could see the blush on her cheeks from my spot across the room. Obviously seeing the bloke's under-things was undoing her just a little bit. I shuddered at the thought, making a silent promise to stupefy Diggory if Juliet ever came into contact with his underwear in a situation aside from this one…if you catch my drift. Although I'm near positive if Jules ever did do anything with him she would never tell me. She knows neither Fred nor I would take that well.

I tried to push the thoughts out of my head, hoping to Merlin nothing like that would happen between the two of them. Instead I focused on separating the strangers' underwear from the rest of their clothes in front of me. Now there's something I never thought I'd want to concentrate on.

It might be thought that perhaps Fred and I should have a problem with gathering up both dirty and clean male undergarments, but we're tougher than that. Fred and I have been through a lot over the years. Trust me, as hard as it may be to believe, there are things infinitely more disgusting out there than used male underwear.

"Did any of the others wonder where we were off to tonight?" Juliet asked as she began stuffing Cedric's boxers in a rucksack she had open on the floor.

I shrugged. "It's been a while since we've been up to our usual shenanigans. I reckon they figure we're just reuniting properly."

Juliet and Fred chuckled. The mishap between the two of them passed away so smoothly after they talked it out that it was hard to believe anything had been wrong in the first place. Everything worked out almost too perfectly. Nothing had changed at all…aside from Juliet falling for Cedric that is.

"Cedric?" Juliet asked.

Fred shook his head. "He asked where you were, we told him you fell asleep early as you were awake all night shagging Lee," he said.

Juliet rolled her eyes.

"No worries. He didn't believe us. Your secret's still safe," I said, tossing several pairs of underwear into another sack on the floor.

Juliet stood up, shouldering her bag. "That's this one cleaned out. You boys finished?" she asked.

I shoved the last pair of underwear into my bag and stood up as well. "We've still got loads of time before everyone finishes dinner. You sure you don't want to enjoy this a little bit more?" I asked cheekily. As uncomfortable as I was with the idea of Juliet fondling Cedric's underwear, I still couldn't pass up the opportunity to tease her.

She rolled her eyes again and smacked me over the head as Fred finished filling up his bag as well.

We did a quick once-over, ensuring nothing looked suspicious. We didn't want anyone to notice anything was wrong until tomorrow morning. If they discovered the joke beforehand they would have time to track us down before we got to go through with phase two.

"Here," Juliet shoved her bag into Fred's arms to hold on to. "I'll go do the check."

Fred and I watched as Juliet changed into an auburn coloured cat—the exact same shade as her hair—in an instant. She bolted out the open door to ensure no one was around.

"It's kind of funny," I said.

"What is?" Fred asked.

"We get rid of the Marauder's Map and then Juliet goes and becomes an Animagus," I said. "It's like we were destined to keep troublemaking."

Fred snorted. "I wonder if McGonagall saw this coming."

"She probably figured we weren't going to give it a rest anyway, so why not just go ahead with it."

"Boys!"

"Looks like the coast is clear," Fred pointed out, carrying both bags out into the corridor.

I put my hand on his shoulder. "Hey, you okay?" I asked. I knew what his answer would be before he had even said it, but I had taken to checking up on him once in a while. I knew every mention of Julie and Cedric truly did eat him up inside.

Fred shot me a glare. "I'm fine George."

I removed my hand and followed him down the stairs toward the common room.

"Do you think she's enjoying this? Bossing us around I mean," I asked, deciding to let the topic go for now.

"I know she is," Fred replied, tossing Juliet's bag into my hands.

"Time to go," Julie said as the two of us rounded the corner. I shoved the bag back into her arms.

"Let's get a move on then shall we?" I said, pushing past her to take the lead again. It was unnatural, this whole Juliet-leading-the-show thing.

"So, what now?" Fred asked. "We sit around in the common room until everyone goes to bed and then we decorate the Hall?"

"That's precisely what we do now," Juliet answered as the three of us stumbled out of the Hufflepuff common room.

We tried to keep our rowdiness down to a minimum as we hurried through the halls toward Gryffindor. Juliet may have some superior talents, but she couldn't prevent us from getting detention if we were caught sneaking out of the Hufflepuff room. Surely breaking and entering paired with theft wouldn't sit well with any of the professors.

"Do you think we'll be able to mange it without getting caught?" Fred asked. "It's not like we have the map to tell us if someone's around…"

"I think I'll have to be the watch guard. I'll sweep the perimeter and stand watch," Juliet said. "If there is anyone around hopefully I'll be able to outrun them to warn you. Only thing is, if it's McGonagall or Dumbledore they'll know it's me."

"I guess we'll just have to take our chances," I said lightly. It's not as if getting caught would be the worst thing in the world, and it certainly wouldn't be the first time. None of us were afraid of school punishment.

Fred's stomach rumbled. I could hear it from ten paces in front of him.

"Who else is hungry?" he asked cheerfully.

As if on cue, my stomach rumbled just as loudly as Fred's had. Juliet laughed.

"Fred, why don't you go fetch us something from the kitchens," she suggested. "Gimme your pack, George and I will meet you in the common room."

"I have to go alone?" Fred asked, and I furrowed my brows in confusion. There was no reason why we couldn't all go.

"But—" I started, only to be cut off.

"_Please_, Fred," Julie said. The way she said it sounded suspicious. Like the two of them had had a previous conversation about this…like they were planning something.

Fred shrugged and handed her his bag. "I'll be back."

Fred nearly sprinted off in the direction of the kitchens and I turned back to Julie suspiciously.

"Why didn't we go with him?" I asked.

She smiled at me conspiratorially.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about something," she said.

I stared at her, thinking hard for something she would want to speak with me alone about. I came up blank.

"All right, what is it?" I asked.

She grinned at me.

"Alicia," she said simply.

I threw my head back in understanding and laughter.

"Of course," I said, shaking my head. "What do you want to know?"

"First of all, why you never told me you liked her!" she said, her voice raising three octaves.

I rolled my eyes. She's so dramatic. Like I really need her to know everything.

"I've never said I like her," I pointed out as we strolled through the darkening corridors.

"You as good as did," she replied.

I chuckled to myself, remembering that conversation before the Hogsmeade trip…back when Julie and Fred had still been fighting. I had told her not to let Alicia fall for one of Cedric's chums. The look on Julie's face had been priceless.

I grinned at her instead of responding.

"Does Fred know?" she questioned conspiratorially.

I shook my head. "Haven't told him, and he's too preoccupied with…his own stuff to figure it out on his own."

Juliet crinkled her forehead briefly at that statement, and I wondered momentarily if I shouldn't have said that. As far as Julie knew there wasn't anything wrong in Fred's life as of late. He was supposedly happy with Angelina and glad to have Julie as his best mate again. Puh…I knew better.

"So you decided to leave us both in the dark?" she asked with a scowl.

I shrugged. "Didn't think it was a big deal to be honest."

Juliet shook her head. "After the hell you put me through when I wouldn't fess up about…last year, and you didn't even have the courtesy to tell me."

I knew what she was sidestepping there. She was afraid to bring up her feelings for Fred. The two of us hadn't really talked about how she felt about my brother since last year. I didn't blame her; it was kind of an awkward subject.

Of course, I'm a fan of putting people in awkward positions.

"You liking Fred is far different than me fancying Alicia," I said, barely registering the frown on Julie's face from the mention of her and Fred. "Fred's my twin, and you're my best mate. Alicia's an outsider."

Juliet snorted at my logic and gave the Fat Lady the password. "Alicia's one of my best mates," she pointed out.

"So?" I asked as the two of us climbed through the hole and into the empty common room.

"So I happen to know that she's fancied you since the beginning of time! And if you've liked her too then something could have been done about the situation ages ago!" she exclaimed, throwing her bags down on the floor.

I fought back a huge stupid grin I knew was threatening to break onto my face. I had always known Alicia had a thing for me—I'm pretty perceptive when it comes to that stuff—but it was still nice to hear from someone.

"You probably shouldn't leave those there," I told her, gesturing to the sacks on the floor as Juliet flung herself onto the sofa nearest us.

She gave her wand a flick and the two bags disappeared. Mine vanished from my shoulder as well.

"Don't change the subject," she scolded. "Are you going to ask her to the ball?"

I took a seat down next to her, propping my feet up on the table in front of me.

"I don't know," I said, shrugging again. "Maybe."

She shot me a confused look. "Why wouldn't you?"

"There are a lot of girls in this school. Sure, I like Leesh, but if I were to get a shot with one of those Beauxbatons girls I wouldn't want to miss it."

I smiled to myself, knowing I'd strike a nerve with Jules. The scoff of disgust and disapproving look on her face told me I had succeeded.

"You're a bloody pig," she said.

I grinned widely at her.

"Seriously George, that's disgusting," she said. "I can't believe you think that way."

I shrugged yet again. "Alicia doesn't seem to think I'm disgusting. She said yes after all."

Juliet's face screwed up in even more confusion and her eyes snapped back to mine.

"What?"

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, Jules, keep up. I said she can't possibly think I'm disgusting as she already said yes."

"Wh…wait, what? You asked her?" she said, her eyes widening in surprise. I smiled widely at her befuddlement. Juliet has always been hilarious to play around with.

"You don't honestly think I'm so much of a prick to leave her as a backup do you?" I said, putting on my best offended act.

She laughed, smacking me over the head. "George, you're infuriating. When did you ask her?!"

"Today after Transfiguration," I said simply. "She was pretty furious with me for throwing the chewed up beans into her hair, but she got over it pretty quickly when I told her I wanted to take her to the ball. She flushed up pretty good."

I chuckled at the memory. Her hair had been a disaster, all covered in Bertie Beans. Her face had gone completely crimson and then she stuttered and nearly fell on her face before she spat out a yes.

Juliet shook her head in bewilderment. "Wow. Who would have guessed she'd actually be charmed by that?"

I smirked at her. "Me."

"Of course," she said with a roll of her eyes.

I grinned at her widely, and then something clicked.

"Wait…" I said. "Fred knows too, doesn't he?"

Juliet failed miserably to hold back a grin.

"You told him?" I said, only mildly irritated.

She grinned cheekily and shrugged. "I may have asked if he thought you liked her," she said. "The two of us discussed it while Leesh was chasing you around the castle."

I rolled my eyes. "How did you decide who got to ask me?" I questioned.

"Exploding Snap," she replied.

"Great, so now you both know," I said.

She laughed. "There are no secrets between the three of us; you must know that by now."

I forced myself to smile, not wanting to raise suspicion. She was wrong, obviously, but there was no way I was going to tell her that Fred had lied to her. Juliet was so happy now. There was no way I was going to mess that up for her.

"I guess not."

I took a minute to really look at Juliet then. Her brown eyes were sparkling with happiness and laughter. Her cheeks were flushed with excitement and her dimples were showing adorably. The smile on her face was beautiful and full of contentment. She looked so happy and so much like the Juliet I feared had faded over the past few months.

I felt myself grinning from ear to ear just from looking at her.

"George?" she asked. Her face was amused, but her voice was self-conscious. "What are you staring at?"

I smiled brightly at her, ruffling her hair with my hand.

"I forgot to tell you how happy I am to have you back," I told her. "I missed you."

She grinned at me and threw herself into my lap catching me completely by surprise.

She laughed at my expression and gave me a deliberately sloppy kiss on the cheek.

"I missed you too Georgie-pie," she said loudly, squeezing me tightly.

I hugged her back and wiped the slobber she had left on my face back onto her clothes. She squealed and I laughed.

"I love you Jules."

"I love you too, George."


	18. Green's Not Really my Colour

**A/N:** Hey guys. Sorry for the ridiculously long wait. I guess I wasn't totally prepared for the completely life altering experience university can be. I've hit a new low lately, and everything else has to take the back-burner for now. I'll do what I can when I feel up to it.

Thanks for all of the reviews, and I know many of you are getting antsy about Fred and Juliet's relationship. I promise you all that he will be making a return, and you will not have to wait until Cedric's death for that to happen.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER EIGHTEEN ---**

_Green's Not Really my Colour_

_Juliet Christie_

The plan went off without a hitch. I stood guard as the twins strung the Hufflepuff boys' underwear from the ceiling and walls of the Great Hall. They made quick work of the decorating as I patrolled the corridors nearby, using my excellent night eyesight to see if anyone was nearby. No one came, and not once did Fred and George's loud laughter echoing off of the walls cause a disturbance in the night. It was perfect…as if a higher power wanted us to pull this off. I wonder if Dumbledore was watching and decided not to intervene…somehow I wouldn't be surprised.

The next morning Fred, George, and I greeted the day with a smug sense of satisfaction. We met in the common room on our way down to breakfast. All three of us had made sure to rise extra early. We wanted to be there when Cedric and his mates walked into the Great Hall. There was no way we were going to miss that reaction.

It was definitely worth the trouble just to see the look on the boys' faces. Cedric, Codie, Ethan, and Vince all entered the Great Hall that morning knowing exactly who the culprits were. What they weren't prepared for was the fact that everyone else in the school had already been enjoying the view of their underwear on display.

As soon as the four of them entered the hall their faces flushed up brilliantly. Their entrance was immediately greeted by hysterical laughter and a lot of pointing and yelling. The three of us had taken the liberty of spreading around to the other tables who the underwear belonged to. Yep, couldn't have gone any better.

The absolute best part was the fact that the four of them knew it had been us (who else would it be?), but they couldn't do anything about it. Cedric was a Prefect, and although I didn't expect he'd ever try and punish us for the prank, we weren't going to take any chances. There was no way we were going to admit to what we did. We didn't have to…gloating would just be overkill.

Thus, the plan was successful and the twins and I were free to enjoy a day of revenge. What could be sweeter?

Unfortunately the rest of the school quickly became more interested with the upcoming Yule Ball to really give Fred, George, and I all the credit we deserved. That little prank was difficult for Merlin's sake. You'd think they'd talk about it for weeks! But no, it was dismissed quite early in exchange for the stupid ball.

Honestly, I was annoyed by the prospect of having a ball. It was a ridiculous tradition if you asked me. We were already living with the students from the other schools, so why on earth was it necessary to wear frilly robes and prance around together? Stupid, stupid, stupid.

I wasn't exactly certain why I was dreading the ball so much. It wasn't as if getting a date would be a problem—obviously Cedric would be asking me. I suppose the thought of dancing in front of everyone while the champions open the ball was a little nerve-wracking, but nothing I was overly worried about. Even getting dressed up and wearing fancy clothing wasn't pushing me too far out of my comfort zone.

When I boiled it all right down I was frightened to admit that I felt the cause of my uncertainty toward the ball was Fred.

I didn't quite understand why, but I was extraordinarily uneasy about the idea of Fred going to the ball with Angelina. Obviously he was going to ask her—if he hadn't already—they were a couple after all. I still hated the fact that they were together…but I had put up with it so far so I didn't know why this whole _dance_ thing was making me more uneasy.

I couldn't figure out what my problem was. I thought it was just because I despised Angelina, but in all honesty the thought of Fred going with anyone kind of irked me. But all romantic feelings I had toward him had long ago disappeared…it couldn't possibly be jealousy. That wouldn't make any sense at all.

"Juliet! Did you hear what happened to me?"

I groaned as I dragged myself out of my last class of the day. Alicia had not shut up about George asking her to the ball (a fact that did not help my frustration about the topic). Of course, George was absolutely gleeful that she was so excited about it. I, on the other hand, found it quite annoying, and I'm certain Katie agreed with me.

"Yes Alicia, you've told me several times. Could you give it a rest?"

"Why are you so grumpy Jules? Hasn't Cedric asked you yet?" she asked, practically bouncing up and down as we headed toward Gryffindor.

I gritted my teeth together. My frustration had nothing to do with Cedric. "Alicia, I am not grumpy. You're just irritating."

"He hasn't asked you yet, has he?" she questioned.

"What does it matter Leesh?" I asked. "I don't even want to go to the stupid ball anyway."

"What? Why not?" she asked. She sounded absolutely aghast.

"What's so great about a ball anyway? Dancing? It's really not my thing."

"You had fun dancing with Cedric at the ministry party," she reminded me. "If it weren't for that night you two wouldn't be together."

"That doesn't mean I want to go prancing about again any time soon," I grumbled.

"It'll be fun! The three of us can get ready together—Oh! Do you think Kate would do my hair?"

I groaned loudly and stormed away from her. I refused to take part in the conversation. Talking about the ball only reminded me that I would have to endure Fred dancing with Angelina—the thought made my stomach churn.

"What's up with you?" she called after me, but she seemed to sense that she should stay away.

I wasn't sure where I was headed exactly, I just knew I didn't want to be around the rest of my mates at the moment. The day had turned from brilliantly hilarious into irritatingly depressing in such a short span that I didn't want to put up with anyone. I opted to roam the halls, looking for a nice place to sit and sort through my thoughts. The whole Yule Ball thing had me seriously unnerved.

I found a quiet window ledge where I could sit and stare out at the grounds in peace and hauled myself up there. Almost immediately I felt myself begin to relax. Free from all of the gossip from Alicia's mouth and the excitement of all of my friends I could listen to the sound of students hurrying through the corridors and feel the cool breeze on my face from the window.

Unfortunately, the peace didn't last long.

"I would have thought a grand schemer such as yourself would have better things to do than stare out the window."

I sighed in disappointment upon hearing Cedric's voice, but forced a smile to form when I turned around to look at him.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I said, attempting to channel the proud prankster from the morning.

He smirked, leaning up against the ledge I was seated on.

"What are you doing all by yourself?" he questioned, looking up at me.

"Needed to get away," I replied. "Alicia was driving me insane."

Cedric chuckled. "Well I'm glad I caught you alone," he said. "I wanted to ask you something."

"Yeah? And what's that?" I asked. "How we got your dirty underwear to stick to the ceiling? Because I already told you…that wasn't us."

Cedric rolled his eyes at me, but failed to hold back his grin.

"You're ridiculous," he said with a shake of his head.

I grinned back at him, drawing an invisible halo around my head.

"What was your question?"

"I wanted to know if you'd go to the ball with me," he said simply.

I smirked at him. I should have known that would be coming. The ball was all anyone could talk about. Obviously it would be on Cedric's mind as well. I opened my mouth to make smart-ass comment, but felt a sinking sensation in my stomach that prevented me from saying anything at all. It was unsettling, especially because thoughts of Fred flashed into my mind as Cedric stared up at me.

"Julie? You alright?" he asked, looking concerned.

I swallowed my discomfort and forced a smile on my face for his benefit. I didn't want to upset him.

"I'd love to," I said quickly, jumping down from my place on the window. I suddenly felt a very strong desire to run to Gryffindor toward the friends I was so keen on avoiding earlier.

Cedric grinned widely. "Excellent." He kissed me on the top of my head and took my hand as I began to walk. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah…I'm just nervous I guess. This means I'll have to open the ball with you though, doesn't it? Dance with you in front of all of those people…?"

Cedric smirked at me. "Is that a problem?"

I nodded vigorously. "Yes, yes it is a problem," I lied. I didn't want to worry him with my idiotic thoughts about Fred.

"Well you don't have a choice. It's payback after that little prank you pulled on me."

A genuine laugh pushed through my fogged up mind.

"I told you Ced, that wasn't me."

"Yeah, yeah, sure it wasn't."

-----

Unfortunately, from then on, talk about the Yule Ball only got increasingly more frequent and more difficult to endure. With only days left until the infamous ball, it was literally all anyone could talk about. It was really beginning to take a toll on my mental stability. I felt like I should be excited with the rest of them…but I just couldn't shake the feeling of despair that constantly bubbled its way to the surface of my thoughts.

Fortunately, no one else seemed to have taken much notice to my discomfort. They were too busy giggling about who they had snagged as dates.

The couples had pretty much been sealed. Aside from George and Alicia being paired, Ethan had asked Katie and she had gladly said yes—the two had been flirting a lot lately. Codie had asked a Ravenclaw girl…I think her name is Cho, and Cedric's irritating friends Vince and Rachel had opted to go together. Rumour had it that even Hermione had a date. The anticipation was definitely rising.

I kept my mind off of my inflating feeling of discomfort over Fred and Angelina by ensuring I was around Fred at nearly every available instance. After my talk with Angelina, she seemed less and less inclined to be around either of the twins as long as I was with them. I guess it was a little childish…like when kids pay no attention to their blue ball until someone else comes along to snag it…but I didn't care. I was feeling bizarrely protective over Fred, despite the fact that I had already chosen to accept the fact that he and Ang were a couple.

The boys unknowingly distracted me from my inner demons by seeking my help with their continuous Ludo Bagman troubles. Apparently he had still neglected to pay them their rightful winnings from the World Cup, and the twins were getting understandably angry.

It was mere nights before the ball was scheduled to occur, and the three of us had composed yet another letter addressed to Mr. Bagman. The whole process was getting ridiculous, and we were beginning to realize that it may be a lost cause. The howler that the twins had set up was a last stitch effort to claim what was rightfully theirs. I expected it was a long shot.

The twins had decided to use Ron's owl for the delivery, and as I was continuing my idiotic game of clutching onto them in order to fend off Angelina, I followed them into the common room that night to ask Ron's permission.

Climbing down the boys' staircase I immediately spotted Angelina and Alicia seated in armchairs next to the fire. Alicia waved and I gave her a nod, ignoring the wary look Angelina sent my way.

Ron, Harry, and Hermione were seated at a round table in the middle of the room. Ron was attempting to assemble a house of cards using a deck of Exploding Snap. We were fortunate enough to see the entire thing blow up in his face moments after we joined them at the table.

I laughed out loud at the sight of Ron once the smoke had cleared. His face was blackened and his eyebrows had been singed and nearly burnt completely off. Fred and George remained surprisingly unfazed. Their faces were all business as they surveyed their brother.

"Nice look, Ron…go well with your dress robes, that will," George said.

Ron reached up to feel how much damage had been done to his face as Harry and I chuckled in amusement. Hermione hadn't so much as glanced up from the text book she had grasped in her hands.

"Ron, can we borrow Pigwidgeon?" George asked.

"No, he's off delivering a letter," Ron replied. "Why?"

"Because George wants to invite him to the ball," Fred answered sarcastically.

"Because _we_ want to send a letter, you stupid great prat," George said.

"Who d'you two keep writing to, eh?" Ron asked, ignoring his brother's stab at him.

"Nose out, Ron, or I'll burn that for you too," Fred said waving his wand threateningly. I chuckled again, preparing myself to get up and leave. The boys would have to find another owl to use to deliver the letter it seemed.

However, before I managed to get up from my seat, the topic of conversation changed.

"So…you lot got dates for the ball yet?" Fred asked, looking between Ron and Harry. Hermione seemed keen on ignoring the whole lot of us.

"Nope," Ron answered.

"Well, you'd better hurry up, mate, or all the good ones will be gone," Fred advised him. I smacked him on the shoulder.

"Who're you going with, then?" Ron asked as Fred shoved me back.

"Angelina," he answered promptly. I scowled.

Even thought there wasn't a single doubt in my mind that he was going to be going to the ball with Angelina, it still irked me a little to have it confirmed out loud.

"What?" Ron asked, taken aback, "You've already asked her?"

"Good point," Fred said. He turned his head and called across the common room. I grimaced, knowing what was coming. "Oi! Angelina!"

Angelina looked up from her place near Alicia by the fire. She glanced at him, and cast a wary look in my direction as well.

"What?" she called back.

"Want to come to the ball with me?"

All of the theatrics were really unnecessary. Fred just liked to show up his little brother. Everyone already knew the two were a couple—obviously they were going to go to the ball together. But, I suppose a formal invitation was appropriate for such an event…I guessed he hadn't already asked her due to the fact that she avoided him whenever I was around.

"All right, then," Angelina said, a hint of a stupid grin on her face. Her eyes still looked wary when they met mine a second time, though.

"There you go," said Fred to Harry and Ron, "piece of cake."

Fred got to his feet with a yawn. "We'd better use a school owl then, George, come on…"

George stood up too. "You coming, Jules?"

I shook my head _no_. I suddenly didn't feel at all like being around Fred. This whole roller coaster of emotions was beginning to become a little sad. I was quite sick of it.

Ron stopped feeling his eyebrows as the boys exited the common room for the owlry.

"We _should_ get a move on, you know…ask someone. He's right. We don't want to end up with a pair of trolls." Ron said.

Hermione finally looked up from her book, with an appalled expression on her face. "A pair of…_what_, excuse me?"

I grimaced, momentarily forgetting my own pathetic woes. Leave it to Ron to make an ass out of himself.

"Well—you know," he said with a shrug, "I'd rather go alone than with—Eloise Midgeon, say."

"Her acne's loads better lately—and she's really nice!" Hermione protested.

I watched the exchange in mild interest. Harry seemed to want to stay out of it.

"Her nose is off-centre," Ron replied.

"Oh, I see," Hermione said, her face heating up with anger, "So basically, you're going to take the best-looking girl who'll have you, even if she's completely horrible?"

"Er—yeah, that sounds about right," Ron replied, nodding. I laughed in disbelief at him. The kid really didn't have a clue.

"Ugh!" Hermione yelled, turning to me in disgust, "Can you believe him? They can't possibly all be like this can they?"

Ron made a face in protest, but Hermione didn't allow him to say anything else.

"I bet Cedric isn't like that at all," she said, and Ron's face flushed in anger.

"Well Diggory's a great bluthering—"

"Hey!" I interrupted, "You'd better watch what you say, Weasley."

Ron raised his no-eyebrows in surprise and shut his mouth.

"I'm going to bed," Hermione said, "Goodnight Juliet."

"Night Hermione."

She got up from her seat, and stormed up the stairs in a huff, muttering something about _boys_ and _ignorance_. I couldn't help but agree.

-----

**A/N**: Okay, so that was pretty much a filler chapter. I've had this kicking around on my computer for ages in an attempt to do something with it. I finally decided it wasn't worth the time, and this is how it turned out. Basically I needed to get this up in order to go any further with the story. It irritated me, and gave me a hard time, so this is the chapter you can blame for the long wait (that and school and all of the real life nonsense that makes the world such a miserable place at times). I'll try to get the next one up in less time, but no promises. I do have exams and such to pay attention to. Review and I'll do my best to update for you guys.


	19. The Yule Ball

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER NINETEEN ---**

_The Yule Ball_

_Juliet Christie_

The Yule Ball was definitely not all it was cracked up to be…or at least that was my opinion. None of the excitement and chaos surrounding the ball was really necessary. It didn't turn out to be as unbelievable as everyone made it out to be.

For me, the ball was more nerve-wracking than for most. The champions and their dates were required—as per Triwizard Tournament traditional policy—to open the ball. That meant Cedric and I, along with the six other unlucky candidates, had to be the first on the dance floor.

Lucky me.

I was a jittery mess from the moment I put on my dress. Katie, Alicia, and I had opted to go for a more modern look in terms of dress robes. Katie was dressed in a deep blue colour that accented her blonde hair beautifully. Alicia had picked out a lovely sea green colour that went perfectly with her honey brown hair and slightly darker skin tone. My dress was a flowy aqua blue with thin straps. It flowed away from my body in wisps near the bottom and the fabric was light and shimmery. It went beautifully with my porcelain skin and complimented my deep auburn-red hair.

Unfortunately the gorgeousness of the dress did not improve the butterflies in my stomach.

Katie had my hair done up in a matter of moments, making it look curly and loose and as if it were about to fall out at any moment. It was beautiful, and I knew no matter how much I bounced around, her spell was going to hold it up.

Alicia was sporting a pin-straight hairstyle with pieces pinned back with sparkly clips. She looked sleek and sophisticated. Katie aimed to be more simplistic with her hair as well, opting to pull it back in a sleek ponytail that curled at the ends.

I can honestly say all three of us looked lovely. Unfortunately, with my nerves, the other two girls managed to look much more composed as we descended the stairs into the common room. Unlike me, the two of them were excited. For Katie, this was the first…let's call it a _date_…that she was sharing with Ethan. Alicia, on the other hand, was in a brand-new relationship with George that she was also unbelievably excited about. Maybe if I were in a similar situation I would have felt more compelled to be excited for the ball, but my nerves were for an entirely different reason.

The boys were to be meeting us outside the Great Hall. I was mildly thankful they decided not to wait for us in the common room. I was positive seeing Angelina and Fred together would only make my feeling of nausea increase. I was not looking forward to watching the two of them enjoy themselves at the ball. I found it hard enough to put up with them on a regular day. I figured this would only be worse.

"I'm so excited!" Alicia said, clapping her hands together enthusiastically as we reached the bottom of the stairs.

Katie gripped Alicia's hand firmly and the two of them squealed with delight. "So am I!"

I trailed behind the other two girls, debating whether or not to just turn around and fake sick for the night. I was beginning to grow angry with myself. There was no reason to feel so uncertain about the ball. All it entailed was dancing. Sure, having to watch Fred and Angelina being touchy-feely around each other was going to be hellish, but I'd been handling it so far…

Right?

The hustle and bustle of squealing girls and grunting teenaged boys was a little overwhelming when we made our way to the Great Hall. The sound of heels hitting the stone floor was echoing off the walls. With each step I took I managed to grow more and more nervous. Thoughts of Fred and Angelina were pushed out of my mind and suddenly the idea of dancing in front of all of these people was beginning to get to me. I knew it was stupid…I liked having attention on me. I guess it's limited to jokes and prank-pulling.

"Juliet?" Katie asked. She and Alicia had been blabbering on all night while I had hardly spoken. Her face was nervous when I met her gaze then. "Are you feeling okay?"

I exhaled, blowing a few wisps of curly hair out of my face. They bounced back into place.

"I'm not so sure I like the idea of opening the dance," I admitted, following the growing crowd of dressed-up students. There was no need for me to admit the other reason of my unease. I wasn't even sure why I was feeling so strongly against Angelina and Fred recently, and I was positive I didn't want Alicia and Katie's input on the subject.

Katie and Alicia grinned at me.

"It'll be fine," Katie promised.

"You're nervous?" Alicia teased as the Great Hall came into view.

"Only a little," I said, straightening myself up. I could see the flaming hair of the Weasley twins standing amongst the crowd of students. Lee was there with his arm around his date—a pretty blonde girl from Beauxbatons he had managed to snag at the last minute.

"There's your date, Leesh," I pointed out, attempting to suck it up and regain my usual courage. "Try not to drool all over him alright?"

Alicia pinched me on the arm just as the twins spotted us and waved us over.

"Ouch!" I yelled, "That's going to leave a mark!"

Alicia shrugged and waved back at George, her face lighting up.

I couldn't see Cedric in the mass of students, so although I was highly uncomfortable with being around Fred while his arm was securely wrapped around Angelina's waist, I followed Katie toward our friends.

George was dressed in simple black robes that were accented with lime green accessories. The shirt beneath the robes was a shocking shade of green, being showed off both at the collar, as well as the cuffs. Matching the shirt identically were his shoes.

I shielded my eyes.

"Try not to look directly at his feet tonight, Leesh," I joked. "Why would you wear lime green?"

George shrugged, shooting me a wide grin. "Alicia said she was wearing green."

Katie rolled her eyes. "Men. Not every shade of green is the same."

George took Alicia's hand and bent to kiss it. She blushed furiously. "She doesn't mind," he said.

"You two are nauseating," Lee said, smacking George on the back of the head.

I rolled my eyes as well, turning to scrutinize Lee and his date. He was dressed in deep plum coloured robes that were oddly charming on him. His date…who's name I neither knew nor could pronounce…was wearing silvery blue that would have looked beautiful on her porcelain skin if it weren't for the sneer she was wearing on her face. I was beginning to think the Beauxbatons girls were trained to wear that face on an every-day basis.

I chatted a little with Lee and his date, all the while attempting to avoid looking at Fred and Angelina standing a mere foot and half away from me. I was already certain this was going to be a long night.

"Juliet?"

I turned instinctively, annoyed with myself for not being able to ignore him.

"Fred!" I said stupidly, as if I were just noticing him there. Angelina was looking uncomfortable as she stared around the area at anyone but me.

"You look…nice," he said awkwardly.

I forced a smile. "Same to you."

Fred was wearing robes very similar to George's. The greatest difference was instead of a lime green collared shirt, he was wearing a light yellow that matched Angelina's dress perfectly. It looked ridiculous with his hair colour, but the dark robes combated it enough that he actually managed to look rather dashing. I hated to admit that Angelina looked gorgeous in her floor-length gown. I tried not to look at her.

"Juliet!"

I turned at the sound of Katie's voice and saw her pointing out into the crowd of students toward the front doors that had yet to open. I raised my eyebrows at her in question.

"I see Ethan and Cedric. Come with me?"

I nodded and turned back to Fred and Angelina. I forced myself to be friendly, saying a quick "Wish me luck" before heading off with Katie without waiting for a reply.

"You didn't tell Cedric to dress to match you, right?" Katie asked. I grinned to myself upon hearing the hint of nervousness in her voice. At least I wasn't the only one feeling the Yule Ball jitters.

"No," I replied. "And I'm glad I didn't. I think it's a little much, don't you?"

"Probably," she said. "Although Fred and Angelina do look kind of…cute."

I crinkled my nose. "I bet that wasn't his idea."

"No, definitely not," she agreed. "And I highly doubt he picked that shirt out himself. Boys are rubbish when it comes to colour-coding."

"_Straight_ boys," I corrected, and Katie laughed.

Cedric and Ethan were standing together next to the doors. They spotted Katie and me as we manoeuvred our way through the thick crowd of excited students. When we managed to pull ourselves out of the sea of people, Cedric was greeting me with a beautiful smile and twinkling hazel eyes.

"You look…" he shook his head and let out a breathy laugh, "absolutely breathtaking."

I couldn't help but feel giddy at his words. Sickeningly enough, I also found myself wishing that Fred had come up with something better to say to me than _you look…nice_. I shook the feeling away quickly and grinned back at Cedric.

"Thank you," I said, letting him place a kiss on my cheek. "And you look…_so_ handsome."

He chuckled at me and held his arm out for me to take. "We're supposed to line up with the rest of the champions. They're going to open the doors soon."

My heart was pounding in my chest as I took his arm. I looked over at Katie for support, but she and Ethan were so engulfed in complimenting each other that she hardly noticed me.

"We'll see you two later," Cedric said to them, and they each sent us a grin. Katie was already blushing, and I was positive I was going to get an earful of details when the night was over.

Cedric lead me through the crowd with ease. People saw him and immediately stepped away to form a path. It was a little unnerving.

"Oh good, there you are," McGonagall said as we stepped into view. "Miss Christie, don't you look lovely. And Mr. Diggory, very dashing indeed." I laughed as she surveyed us. Even on a night like this when she was dishing out compliments her mouth was still pursed into a firm line.

I surveyed the group of Champions and their dates that were amongst us. Fleur Delacour was already there with her date—a smarmy looking Durmstrang boy, and Viktor Krum was talking to them with…_Hermione_ on his arm.

"_Hermione_?" I said, staring at her with wide eyes. She was almost unrecognizable. Her dress was absolutely beautiful, and her usually bushy brown hair was styled delicately. She looked amazing.

She smiled back at me and her nerves were clearly showing.

"Hi Julie," she said pleasantly. "Are you as nervous as I am?"

I gaped at her. "Look at you!" I said, feeling suddenly very sisterly toward the girl. "You look so grown up!"

She let out an embarrassed laugh.

"So…you and Krum eh?" I asked, lowering my voice so he wouldn't hear me talking about him.

Her embarrassment was still clear as she sent a sideways glance back over at Krum before shrugging.

"We talk occasionally," she told me.

I laughed, shaking my head. I would have guessed Hermione would go with Ron over anyone else…but it wasn't a surprise that the boy hadn't asked her. He wasn't the best with expressing his feelings…or considering the feelings of others for that matter.

"Well you'll be the talk of the night looking like that on the arm of a celebrity," I joked.

"Let's hope not," she said. She sounded only half-serious.

"Hermy-onee," Krum said, turning to her. I bit my lip trying not to laugh at his mispronunciation.

"Oh, sorry Viktor," she said. "This is my friend Juliet. Cedric's girlfriend."

Viktor nodded to me curtly and I did the same as Cedric extended his hand. "Hey there, Viktor," he greeted.

"Mr. Diggory," he said.

I found the formality silly. It was very much like little kids playing grown-up as we ran through our introductions.

"Where is Potter?" McGonagall said, pushing past the rest of us. "The ball is about to start."

She bustled about, moving through the crowd looking for him, and I turned my attention back at Cedric.

"I didn't know Krum and Hermione even talked to each other," I said to him, my eyes still glued to the two standing across from us. Hermione looked rather uncomfortable standing amongst them, but she was smiling brightly nonetheless.

"Neither did I," Cedric told me.

I took a scan of the area and looked at the grinning faces of all the people around me. I swallowed hard and glanced up at Cedric.

"I'm suddenly not so keen on doing this," I said, biting down on my bottom lip.

"You've got nothing to worry about," Cedric assured me. "It doesn't sound like anyone knew Hermione was coming with Krum. I bet all eyes will be on them tonight."

I pursed my lips. That didn't really comfort me all that much. But it did seem to have some truth to it, as Harry showed up with one of the Patil twins trailing him only moments later. When he spotted Hermione his jaw went slack. Clearly he didn't know about the arrangement either.

"Hi Harry," I said cheerfully as Harry and his date fell in line behind us. "Don't you look handsome."

He gave me a pained smile and leaned in to say something to me. I leaned forward, away from Cedric.

"I'm rubbish at dancing," he told me quietly.

"It's alright," I said. "I'm rubbish at it too."

"You don't have to lead," he pointed out.

"Ehem," Little-Miss-Patil-Twin cleared her throat to interrupt us. "They're opening the doors."

I turned back and stared forward with wide eyes. We were receiving instructions on what we were supposed to do once inside. I hoped Cedric was listening, because I wasn't capable of focusing.

I must have been visibly shaken, because Cedric turned to me.

"Why are you so nervous?" he asked with a laugh. "This isn't the first time we've danced together."

I played with the fabric of my dress, struggling to remain calm. "This isn't the same. No one was paying attention to us back then."

"That's not true," Cedric disagreed. "My father was watching us."

I bit my lip and scrunched up my nose at the memory of his father's speech back during the Quidditch World Cup. "I forgot."

He laughed and bent down to kiss my cheek lightly. "Just relax. You may stink at dancing, but it's all in the leading."

I rolled my eyes at him and tried to swallow my nerves. He held his arm out to me and I laced mine in his, gripping his arm with more force than necessary.

"You ready?" he whispered to me. I could feel his smirk against my ear as he spoke.

"Never," I replied with a nervous smile.

He chuckled as the doors in front of us opened. I gasped. The Great Hall was fabulous. It was breathtaking. There were intricate icicles everywhere—hanging from the walls and ceiling. The entire place looked like an ice castle. It was beautiful.

The eight of us had been instructed to march through the Great Hall together, which was extraordinarily nerve-wracking with everyone surrounding us watching. Cedric was right, though. Most of the attention did seem to be on Hermione and Krum. Everyone was shocked to discover that professional Quidditch player and Seeker for Bulgaria _Viktor Krum_ had chosen fourth-year brain Hermione Granger as his object of affection. I guessed there were many girls in the room who were jealous of her.

The actual dancing is when things started to get iffy for me. I made a downright fool of myself several times, tripping over my own feet and failing to land on my high heels properly. I hadn't realized I was so nervous. Up until that point I had thought the only reason I was truly nauseous over the whole event was the fact that Fred was going with Angelina.

Cedric quite enjoyed trying to keep me on my feet. He laughed and held me up, and it wasn't until I caught him staring over my shoulder that I realized what was wrong with me.

Jerking my head around to glance over my shoulder—still twirling around with Cedric—I spotted George, his wand out and pointed directly at me. His raucous laughter was filling the air.

"Ugh, George," I grunted under my breath, fighting against the constant trips he was sending my way.

"I got it," Cedric chuckled in my ear. He grabbed his wand out of his robes and muttered something under his breath. I turned again to see George's wand come soaring toward us. I reached out and snatched it from the air, twirling it around tauntingly.

He winked at me and blew me a kiss. I rolled my eyes.

By the time my tripping had ceased, the dance floor had been opened up to everyone. I was relieved that the pressure had been taken off of us, and I no longer had to look like a fool in front of the entire room, but I decided I didn't much like being surrounded by all of the dancing couples.

Cedric was definitely more into the whole thing than I was. He seemed to be enjoying himself, and I tried my very best to look like I was as well. He held me close to him as I surveyed the rest of the room.

Katie and Ethan were nearby. Katie was blushing furiously and looked giddy beyond belief. It was actually quite funny to see her looking more flustered than Alicia for once. Leesh was usually the one who couldn't keep her cool.

Alicia and George were clearly enjoying themselves. They were goofing around like good friends should. It made me smile to see them happy together after so many months of Alicia pining after him.

Harry gave up dancing early and I spotted him and Ron sitting at a table with their dress robes partially undone (Merlin were Ron's robs ever ugly!). Neither of them looked very impressed, and their dates certainly didn't look very happy upon being ignored. The sight of them made me chuckle in amusement.

The worst were Angelina and Fred. They were dancing like absolute morons, flailing their limbs in odd directions. They looked positively ridiculous (a fact that I enjoyed) but they looked like they were enjoying themselves immensely…and that bothered me…a lot.

I spent the first half of the ball faking enthusiasm. At times I was very close to losing myself in all of the fun, but then I would spot Fred and Angelina together and my good mood would fade out again. I worked hard not to let Cedric notice how put out I was—I didn't want him to worry about how I was feeling—there was no sense in making him feel bad too.

Thus, I faked a smile and danced as enthusiastically as I could bring myself to in order to combat my building feeling of jealousy and anger toward Fred and Angelina.

I was hot and dishevelled when I noticed a change between Angelina and Fred. I pulled myself away from Cedric and excused myself to talk to Katie. I wanted to know what was going on…and I was ashamed to say that I was hoping there was trouble in paradise. I'm a horrible person, I know.

"What's going on between Fred and Angelina?" I asked Katie, screwing up my face in confusion. The two had looked perfectly ecstatic little over an hour ago. Now Fred was looking red in the face and Angelina was nowhere to be found.

Katie bit down on her bottom lip as Ethan excused himself to talk with Cedric. Katie, too, looked red in the face and dishevelled from all the dancing. She also had an unsure expression on her face, like she didn't know whether or not she should tell me what was going on.

"What?" I asked, thoroughly confused now. "What happened?"

She pursed her lips as if debating whether or not to tell me whatever it was, and then let it spill.

"Alicia told George what Ang did to you," she said.

My eyes widened. "She did? Why…why would she do that? And why now?" I asked. I wasn't angry…I was surprised. I knew Angelina deserved to whatever she got as punishment for what she said about me, but I had come to terms with the fact that it wouldn't ever come out into the open. I knew I wasn't going to say anything. I didn't expect anyone else would.

Katie shrugged. "You'd have to ask her," she said. "All I know is George told Fred, and Fred…"

"Dumped her," I guessed. Katie nodded.

"Pretty much."

I screwed up my face again in concentration and let out a sigh.

"Okay, I'm going to go talk to him. If Cedric comes looking for me, tell him I'll be right back."

Katie nodded. "Have fun with that. He looks pretty angry."

I let out a laugh. "Yeah. This'll be fun."

I made my way across the dance floor toward Fred quickly, manoeuvring through the dancing bodies and flailing arms.

"Hey, Fred," I said, grabbing hold of his arm. He turned to look at me, startled.

I tugged on his arm, pulling him toward the exit to lead him outside. "Let's talk."

He didn't say anything. Clearly he knew what I wanted to talk about, and allowed me to pull him all the way out into the frigid night air. I tried to ignore the cold and turned to look at him in the dim light spilling out from the Great Hall.

"So," I said, trying to sound casual and normal. I figured he'd be upset. I wanted to handle this delicately. "Want to talk about it?"

He shrugged, staring out at the snow where the blue and purple lights from inside created pretty colourful patterns on the blanket surface.

"What's there to talk about?" he asked. "She lied to me."

I studied him thoughtfully and found what I saw strange. He didn't look sad or upset. He looked almost…relieved.

"Are you okay?" I asked, unsure of what else to say.

He shrugged again and turned to look at me, tugging his tie to loosen it around his neck.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, running a hand through his hair.

I bit down on my lip and exhaled noisily.

"You told me she made you happy," I said with a shrug. "I didn't want to ruin that for you."

His forehead wrinkled in confusion. "But she was awful to you."

"I know," I said. "But after our talk…I didn't want to see you hurt, so I decided not to tell you."

He let out a disbelieving laugh and shook his head.

"You're crazy," he said.

"I am?" I asked, ignoring the goosebumps forming on my arms from the cold.

"After everything I did to you—"

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up Fred," I told him.

"Excuse me?" he asked. A smile formed on his lips and I laughed.

"We've established that you're sorry. Let's not get into how awful you were to me. I forgave you ages ago, remember?"

He chuckled again, "Yeah, but—"

"No, no buts," I interrupted. "Listen, I care about you, and I wanted to see you happy. Angelina made you happy, so…I decided to keep my mouth shut."

"Well…you're an amazing person for wanting to do that for me," he said. His eyes were twinkling in the darkness, and I smiled in response.

I shrugged. "I guess. Although it didn't really help anything. Apparently Alicia and George are incapable of keeping their mouths shut," I said with a laugh.

He smirked. "They were looking out for you," he said. "None of us want to see you get hurt. They just wanted me to know the truth. I'm glad I know."

I nodded, staring out into the darkness, listening to the pounding music from inside. My arms were beginning to go numb with the cold, but I ignored it.

"Well…I'm sorry it worked out this way," I said, fighting against the teeth chattering I could feel starting to develop.

"Worked out what way?" he questioned, staring at me with curiosity written all over his face.

"With Angelina," I clarified. "I know you really liked her."

He pursed his lips and frowned, staring down at his shoes in the snow.

"Are you sure you're all right?" I asked, observing him with concern.

He cleared his throat. "Yeah, of course."

I smiled sadly at him. I hated seeing him upset. Even if deep down I was really glad that their relationship had ended, I still didn't like knowing it was causing him any sort of grief.

"C'm'ere Freddy," I said, moving to pull him into a hug.

He smiled and hugged me tightly. It felt nice…maybe because I was freezing from standing out in the cold. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

"I didn't get to tell you how beautiful you look," he said, running his hands from my shoulders down my arms.

I grinned at him. "Well thank you. You look rather dashing yourself," I said with a smirk.

"You're freezing," he pointed out, rubbing his hands up and down my arms again. I pushed the emotions that arose upon feeling him touch me that way. It felt almost too nice.

"Let's go inside," I said, pulling back from him. "I didn't get a dance from you yet."

-----

My mood was definitely uplifted for the remainder of the ball. Actually…that was an understatement. I was ecstatic to hear that Fred had broken up with Angelina. As awful as that sounded, I was glad to know it was over between them. I tried not to think of exactly why I felt so strongly toward it, and just tried to enjoy myself for the rest of the night.

Dancing with Fred turned out to be the most fun event of the entire night. I let loose, acting like a complete moron. Neither Fred nor I had any rhythm whatsoever, and we definitely let it show. I was almost in tears from laughing so hard, and it wasn't long before Alicia and George joined us. Our arms were flailing so uncontrollably that people had to take a few steps back to avoid being hit.

Unfortunately, the fun couldn't last all night long. I did have a date to attend to. It wasn't hard to explain to Cedric why I had been M.I.A. for over half an hour, but he didn't want to let me go again for the remainder of the night. I was glued to his side, and although I half-wished I could spend the rest of the night with Fred and George and the rest of my friends, I was feeling much better knowing that Fred's attention was not going to be focussed on Angelina while I was away. It was comforting enough to allow me to enjoy the rest of the night with Cedric.

And while I danced the remainder of the night away with Cedric, I ensured my mind didn't wander through the thoughts of why…why exactly I was beginning to feel an increasing longing for the way things might have been between Fred and me. This was where I wanted to be. Cedric was who I wanted to be with. He was amazing. He was clever. He was sweet, and strong and perfect.

And yet…I couldn't stop staring at Fred on the other side of the Hall.


	20. Sleepover

**A/N:** Merry Christmas, and HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone! Hope you're all having a good holiday and you're enjoying yourselves immensely and pigging out on lots of food. That's what holidays are all about, right?

This is a Cedric chapter…sorry for anyone thinking this would be the turning point for Juliet and Fred. I hope you all enjoy this chapter…as you've all probably figured out, I'm sticking with JK Rowling's plotline and Cedric will be killed by the Death Eaters in the third task. Cedric's time with us is coming to an end, so we'll just have to enjoy the time we have left with him.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER TWENTY ---**

_Sleepover_

_Fred Weasley_

The Yule Ball definitely did not go as I had planned. I don't think I could have ever predicted the line of events that took place. The first surprise was Hermione Granger. She had showed up on the arm of Viktor Krum…much to ickle Ronniekin's disgust. He was green with envy. The jealousy pouring out of him was worse than I had ever seen anyone with before in my life…but that's not really the point. The point was, no one could have ever predicted that Krum would strike a fancy with our little Hermione Granger—brainiac extraordinaire. Definitely a bizarre choice on his part, but, to each his own I suppose.

The second surprise was Juliet. I caught random glimpses of her throughout the night (I know, I know, I just can't stop myself from looking at her can I?) and the entire time from what I could see, she looked out of it. She was smiling…but even from across the room I could tell she was faking it. I couldn't figure out what was wrong. I would have figured she'd be happy. Everyone else seemed to be. Plus, she spent nearly the whole night with Cedric. That's what she liked doing nowadays. I couldn't figure out why she wouldn't be ecstatic with that arrangement. There must have been something else bothering her.

The third, and possibly most unexpected shocker of the evening, happened when George yanked me away from Angelina in the middle of a song and out into the frigid evening air…

"George, what's going on?" I asked, wrenching my arm out of my brother's grasp. There was no need for him to pull on me. I would have welcomed a moment or two away from Angelina. I mean, it wasn't as if I hadn't been having fun…it's just, I wasn't really and truly enjoying myself as much as I should have been.

"Do you know what Alicia just told me?" he asked.

"That she's changed her mind and your shoes really are ridiculous enough to make her run in the other direction?"

He ignored me completely, without even being fazed by my comment.

"She told me that your girlfriend has been feeding you lies about our best friend," he said. The look in his eyes was stern and angry. It confused me. I had no idea what he was talking about.

"What?"

"Supposedly Juliet told Ang she wasn't good enough for you," George said. "Lies. She's plotting against Angelina to tear the two of you apart. Lies. Juliet was dating Cedric just to get back at you. Lies—"

"Well I knew that one wasn't true…I kind of got that one into my head myself," I admitted sheepishly.

"And the others?"

"Why would Angelina say something like that?" I asked, confused beyond belief. It didn't make sense for her to make up such rubbish about Juliet. She was my best friend…and quite clearly there wasn't anything romantic going on between the two of us. I admit it was iffy at times, but ever since Angelina had been in the picture it had been pretty clear that Juliet and I weren't going anywhere.

"I don't know, mate, maybe she felt threatened by Juliet. Maybe because she's known all along Julie's the one you actually want?"

His tone was patronizing. I didn't much care for it.

"Did Juliet say anything about this to you?" I asked him, looking back toward the exit we had come through.

"Now why would she do that?" he said. "Alicia says Juliet didn't want to come between you and Angelina. She wanted you to be happy. If Julie had said one word to me about Angelina's behaviour I would have come straight to you, and she knew that."

I shook my head in disbelief and ran a hand through my hair.

"Blimey."

"You said it, mate," George agreed. "I never thought I'd see the day when a cat fight would break out over _you_."

I snickered, turning to head back inside the castle. My toes were getting numb and I knew there was no point in dragging out the inevitable.

"What's your game plan?" George asked, falling into stride with me. I looked down at my feet and rolled my eyes at George's lime green shoes. What a tool.

"End it with Ang," I said and shrugged. "Not really much of a game to plan for."

"Don't be so sure, mate."

-------

_Juliet Christie_

I worked hard to put myself back into my right mind over the next week. The ball had proven disastrous for my mental stability. I was beginning to doubt my sanity. I was in a relationship with Cedric—possibly the most wonderful person to walk the planet—and I was doubting myself.

I decided I needed to pull myself together. I was just overjoyed that Fred had finally broken up with Angelina. Any feelings I was having toward him were just out of happiness that he had finally come to the realisation that he deserved someone better.

The break-up of Fred and Angelina wasn't the only piece of good news that developed from the Yule Ball. Katie announced that night before we all headed up for bed that she and Ethan were officially a couple. I was happy for her, and Alicia and I stayed up late with her as she gushed about the ball and described in detail all of the little moments the two of them shared together. Alicia jumped in with a few stories herself. It was a bit nauseating really, but the frightening part was the fact that the only stories I wished to share in the discussion were the ones revolving around Fred and Angelina breaking up. It unnerved me a bit that I wasn't as willing to put forth girly details from my night with Cedric.

The next week passed without much event. The entire school was still on a high from having experienced the Yule Ball. It was all anyone could talk about, although now that it had come and gone, anticipation for the second task had begun to build up as well.

Cedric had figured out the clue from the egg, which wasn't really any surprise to me. I knew he had been working on it, and he eventually managed to happen across the answer one day. He came to me, spouting some gibberish about Merpeople and thieves…the clue had been some strange song about the combination of the two. What was quite clear to the both of us was that the task seemed to be taking place underwater, and that meant the Black Lake.

That information was a bit worrisome, as both Cedric and I were well aware that the lake contained frightening creatures. Only one amongst the list of underwater dwellers was the giant squid…what else lay beneath the surface was beyond me.

I spent a lot of my time trying to distract myself from thoughts of Fred plaguing my mind by focussing on helping Cedric prepare for the second task. It proved to be fairly futile, as I constantly found my mind wandering back to the Yule Ball and how much fun I had while I was with Fred versus the time I spent with Cedric.

By the time the weekend had hit, I had spent the majority of my time trying to force myself into not thinking about Fred. It was most effective when Fred wasn't around, but whenever there was even a slight chance that I might see him I felt distracted. I was beginning to get angry with myself. It needed to stop.

One night Cedric suggested I spend the night at Hufflepuff with him. I was kind of iffy about it at first…I wasn't so sure if I really wanted to have a sleepover with him. The only time I had ever shared a bed with someone who wasn't Ginny or Hermione was with Fred on nights that I would sneak into his and George's bedroom at the Burrow. The thought of spending the night with someone else seemed somehow wrong.

I ended up agreeing, though. I knew it would be fun, despite the bizarre mental issues I was experiencing. I always enjoyed spending time with Cedric. That was one thing that hadn't changed.

I agreed to sneak into Hufflepuff to spend the night with him. He met me outside of the Fat Lady portrait just before curfew.

Cedric snuck me into the Hufflepuff common room with ease. Of course, the fact that I could transform myself into a cat was of great help. No one noticed anything suspicious when Cedric walked in carrying me in one arm. I must admit, I was pretty smug to see how awe-struck Cedric had been when I showed him what I could do. He had spent half an hour making me demonstrate the transformation for him again and again. I obliged, mostly because it was still a new aspect of my life. I wasn't quite used to it myself.

As Cedric carried me through the doorway to Hufflepuff, I didn't recognize anyone in the common room, and I wondered briefly where everyone was. Ultimately I was thankful, though. I was excited about getting some alone time with Cedric.

To my complete surprise, instead of taking a seat in the common room to wait for everyone to head up for bed—it was getting late so surely we wouldn't have to wait long—he headed past the few lingering students straight for the hallway to the right of the common room.

Confused, I stared at the doors on the right-hand side as we passed by them. I remembered having to come through here in search of the seventh-year dormitory. I was certain Cedric now knew exactly how the twins and I had managed to pull off that prank.

"You might want to close your eyes," he whispered softly to me. "The guys might not be fully dressed."

I wrinkled my nose—I wasn't sure if he could tell—and clamped my eyes shut, allowing my head to cuddle into the rest of my body. It was kind of cool knowing no one would be able to tell that I was anything more than a sleeping cat.

Cedric opened the door and stepped inside. My enhanced hearing told me there was still one person moving around. Two people were already snoring in their beds. I was surprised—it wasn't late at all. It seemed as though the Hufflepuffs weren't night owls like many of the Gryffindors were.

"Ced—that you?" I could tell from the voice that it was Vince—only because I didn't recognize it as much as I would have known Ethan or Codie's. Vince didn't spend nearly as much time around Cedric and me as his other friends. I think it had something to do with Vince's strong connection with Rachel—maybe her negativity towards me had rubbed off on him.

"Who else would it be?" Cedric replied.

Vince must have been in the bathroom—I could hear water from a tap running, so I figured it was safe to open my eyes.

It was dimly lit inside the dormitory, so I could make out the arrangements of the room. From my previous visit to this room, I already knew which bed was Cedric's. His still appeared to be the neatest—it was made unlike Vince's. The other two were blocked from view by the surrounding sheets. Behind them Codie and Ethan snored softly.

"Just checking. I wasn't sure you'd come back tonight—thought maybe you and your girlfriend might be having a slumber party or something."

I laughed internally at how accurate Vince's guess was.

Cedric didn't respond to Vince's comment, but placed me down on his bed carefully. I stared up at him through the darkness, still able to see his features perfectly in the night.

"So you guys have been spending a lot of time with each other eh? I gotta admit, man, I was a little offended at first—what with you hanging out with the rest of us less—but I get it now."

"You get what?" Cedric asked, untying the tie from his school uniform.

"I understand why you're with her so much," Vince explained. "And I wanted to ask, how is she?"

Cedric was kneeling now, rummaging through his trunk at the end of the bed, and his head snapped up at Vince's words. My eyes widened in surprise, and I felt a hiss building up in my throat. I struggled to suppress it.

"Excuse me?" he asked, sounding just about as appalled as I felt.

"How is she?" Vince repeated. "I mean, obviously you guys have been…you know…_together_. Why else would you be spending all of your free time with her?"

I couldn't help it. The hiss exited my mouth—it wasn't loud, so Vince didn't hear it. Cedric surely did, but he didn't take any notice of it. He looked just as angry as I was. I had half a mind to hex Vince into oblivion right then and there.

I wasn't stupid, I knew guys talked about that kind of thing, but the way Vince worded it just sounded…awful. Like there was no other explanation for why we were spending so much time together. Plus, Cedric and I _hadn't_. We hadn't even come close. Even if we had, the fact that Vince actually believed that was the only logical explanation for two people spending time together was appalling!

I hated him.

"You think that's why I've been spending time with her?" he asked. He was standing again and his anger was clear in the tone of his voice. It sounded as if he could rip Vince's head off—I know I wanted to.

"Well why not? If I were you I'd definitely be taking advantage of that situation. Juliet's hot."

My claws dug into Cedric's bed sheets as I held back another hiss. It was lucky Vince wasn't anywhere near me, or I would have clawed his eyes out by now.

Cedric's eyes were full of fury now. His fists were clenched and his jaw was locked.

"Do _not_ talk about her like that," he said. His voice was only just louder than a deadly whisper, but I could tell by Vince's abrupt silence that he had heard.

"Whoa, Ced, I wasn't trying to offend you—you don't have to tell me anything if you don't want. I just assumed we're friends and you'd tell me."

"First of all, my relationship with Juliet is none of your business," Cedric emphasized. He was glaring at Vince—although I couldn't see him from where I was situated—and his eyes were furious. "And second, I respect both her and myself too much to _take advantage_ _of her_ as you put it."

I suddenly realized that the snoring in the room had stopped. It seemed Ethan and Codie were awake.

Cedric was once again on his knees, more frantically rummaging through his trunk. I watched him, tuning out Vince's attempts at an apology. Cedric seemed to be doing the same.

"Shut up Vince. I don't want to hear your voice again tonight."

Cedric's tone held a note of authority. It was strange to hear, but it was kind of impressive. And despite the situation I felt uplifted that he would stand up for me—for us—like that.

Vince fell silent, and neither of the other two said anything either.

Cedric threw a pair of boxers on the bed next to me, followed by a t-shirt that looked like it might be just a tad too small for him. Then he pulled the sheet tightly around his four-poster, leaving me alone inside.

I was confused for a minute at what he had intended for me to do, and then I caught on.

If I had been able to blush while in my cat form, I would have.

As quickly as I could I changed from my cat form into my human form. I pulled out my wand from my pocket, placing a silencing charm on the thin walls of the four-poster. I didn't want any of the guys hearing me as I struggled to change quietly.

In less than a minute I was changed, feeling slightly self-conscious in Cedric's clothing, and then I switched back into my cat form.

Cedric waited longer than necessary to pull back the sheet—obviously to ensure I was decent. He glanced at the cat-me and at the pile of my clothes next to me before taking the heap and shoving it in a corner of his trunk. My wand went in there with everything else—I had no pocket to put it in these clothes.

I felt self-conscious knowing my clothing was now mixed in with his.

Cedric was dressed in his pyjamas—a pair of flannel plaid pants and a plain white t-shirt. I felt my heart leap into my throat…he really could look good in absolutely anything.

The angry look still on his face, he picked me up from his bed and hurried out the door. None of the others—who were now all in their prospective beds—said anything as he slammed the door shut and continued down to the common room.

The room was empty, and the fire was still burning pleasantly in the corner.

I immediately jumped out of Cedric's grasp, landing easily on two feet instead of four as I hit the ground.

As soon as I had landed I turned without hesitation, and grabbed Cedric in a tight hug.

"Thanks for standing up for us back there," I said, trying to ease some of his anxiety. I didn't want him to be angry during our sleep over. It would ruin all of the fun.

He managed a small smile before he frowned. "Vince has never been my favourite."

I smiled at him. "Yeah he's kind of a pig."

Cedric looked down at me with adoration in his eyes. I felt like I could almost read his mind—he was happy that Vince hadn't upset me…or at least he hadn't upset me _too_ much.

"I'm sorry about him," he said, smoothing my hair away from my face.

I shrugged. "It's not your fault. And it doesn't bother me anyway—who cares what he thinks?" I said, pulling Cedric toward the comfortable-looking sofa next to the fire. The anger in me had disappeared as soon as we had left the dormitory. Now that I was alone with Cedric, I couldn't be bothered with miniscule stuff like that.

We both sat down, Cedric immediately placing his arms around me. He had me sitting as close to him as possible, my legs draping over his lap.

"You look cute in my clothes," he commented, placing a kiss on the top of my head.

I grinned and blushed, feeling self-conscious once again. "You look cute in your clothes too."

I pursed my lips. It wasn't very often that I was awkward in Cedric's presence, but my mind was drifting back to Gryffindor where I knew Fred and George would be sitting up in the common room. If I decided to go back there, the three of us could hang out and goof off like normal. I mentally kicked myself for thinking that way.

"Let's continue our game," I suggested.

Cedric and I had started up a sort of game we would play at odd moments when we wanted to pass the time. It had started off as a way to get to know each other when we first began hanging out, but it had grown into a semi-embarrassing method of digging out each other's deep dark secrets. It amused both of us, and it always managed to put a smile on my face. I reckoned that's all I really needed—a reminder of why I loved being around Cedric so much.

"Okay, it's your turn," he said, turning to me slightly while still watching the fire a few feet away, "One thing you've never told me before."

I thought for a minute, crossing my legs underneath me. I had already thought one up for the next time the game continued.

"When I was seven I broke my cheekbone," I said, remembering with clarity the pain that was involved in that event.

"How'd you do that?" he asked, wincing slightly at the thought.

"I was visiting my aunt—my Muggle aunt—in Canada, and her son—my cousin—had a few of his friends over. He wanted to go out to play hockey—Muggle game—on the frozen pond, and I wanted to play too…so I tagged along," I started.

"Hockey…I've heard of that. What happened? Puck to the face?" Cedric asked with a grimace. It surprised me that he knew the terminology, but I didn't ask why.

"No," I replied, "stick. Jeremy wasn't paying attention—did a slap shot with me standing behind him." I chuckled a little at the memory, surprised that _I_ had remembered the terminology. Truth be told I could only recalled what a _slap shot_ was because Jeremy had screamed it out as he did it.

"Ouch." The wince on Cedric's face became more profound.

"Tell me about it. I've still got the bump where it hit me."

Without him asking to see, I took Cedric's hand and held it up to my face, pushing his fingers into my right cheek where I knew the lump could still be felt. I was happy to see that when his hand touched my face the familiar warmth in my stomach started up again, and my lips broke into a smile. It was comforting to know that the frightening feelings I had been having for Fred hadn't dimmed the spark I felt for Cedric.

"You were seven?" he asked as he moved his fingers around in small circles. He used his other hand to feel the other side of my face, comparing the difference.

I nodded. I could feel the blush rising to my cheeks from his touch. It didn't help that he was staring directly into my eyes as he touched my face. I happily gave into my impulses, glad to see they hadn't dimmed or diminished, and pressed my lips up against his firmly.

"He was fifteen," I said, smiling at him as I pulled away.

"Bet he felt bad."

I laughed. "I told my aunt and uncle that he did it on purpose. He was grounded for a week."

Cedric laughed too, still holding my face in both of his hands. I wondered how he could stand holding them there—my cheeks must have been burning with the blood rising to them so much. At least he didn't tease me about it. I had a feeling he enjoyed the reaction I had to him.

"Okay, your turn," I said.

He dropped his hands down from my face, but took one of mine in his, caressing it with his thumb as he pondered.

"Uh…," he stalled for a minute, presumably trying to think of something I hadn't already heard, "Um…I can't sleep with my socks on."

I rolled my eyes and faked a look of disgust. "Wow, you're a freak," I said sarcastically.

"What? It's hard to think of good ones on the spot!" he defended.

I laughed at him. "Actually, I can't sleep with socks on either…hmm, I wonder why that is."

"We're both freaks?" he offered.

"Yeah, maybe that's it," I said with a thoughtful nod. "Tell me another one. That one doesn't count."

Cedric laughed, but obliged, scrunching up his face in thought once more. It was cute the way the spot between his eyebrows crinkled up when he was thinking hard about something. It made me smile.

After a moment his expression changed. It was suddenly nervous, although he also looked a little excited.

"Ok, I'll tell you something I've never told you before, but it doesn't exactly work with the original rules of the game," he said.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"It's not solely about me…well I guess it is…It involves you too—but I guess I'm really only talking from my perspective…I don't know your side—"

"Whoa, Cedric," I said, stunned by the way he was blabbering. I had never seen him so flustered before. "I have no idea what you're going on about."

He smiled sheepishly at me. "Sorry."

"What were you going to say?" I asked.

He hesitated, and then bit down on his lower lip. "You sure you want to hear it?"

I peered at him, perplexed. The way he was looking at me was confusing, and a little scary. There was something very meaningful in the way his eyes were boring into mine now.

"Of course," I replied, feeling very bewildered.

"Okay, uh…Jules…"

"Yes Cedric?" I was beginning to get a little worried now. What was he going to say that was such a big deal?

He clenched his teeth together for a moment, stalling.

"Ced, you can tell me anything," I encouraged him. "You know that."

He nodded, pursing his lips, hesitating for a fraction of a second longer before he blurted it out.

"Juliet…I…I love you."

I stared at him, stunned into complete silence. I felt unreal, like I was floating. He couldn't possibly have said that…could he?

"Jules?"

There's no way he just told me…that he…loved me. No way.

"What did you just say?" I asked. My voice sounded a little strained.

"I said…I love you?" he sounded worried. "Oh no, should I not have said that? I'm sorry, I shouldn't—"

I immediately recovered, hearing the fear in his voice.

"No, no!" I interrupted, "I was just surprised is all…I wasn't expecting that at all, but, no, don't be sorry."

He stared at me, his beautiful hazel eyes full of fear. Strangely it made my heart flutter that he was afraid of my rejection so much. It was unbelievable to think that I would ever be capable of rejecting someone like Cedric…as _if_ I could ever _not_ love him…

"Cedric," I said, a wide smile forming on my lips, "Cedric, I love you too."

Cedric's eyes lit up and the smile that made its way onto his face was breathtaking. My heart fluttered at how happy he was, and I knew it was the truth. I did love Cedric Diggory.

"Are you sure?" he asked, although judging by the look on his face I didn't think he doubted me.

I grinned at him, "Of course I'm sure."

Cedric's lips were on mine in an instant, kissing me in a way that could only be described as elation. I could feel the smile on his lips as he threw his arms around me, hugging me close. I laughed, effectively ruining the kiss, but he was grinning as he pulled me onto his lap.

I perched myself on top of him, marvelling at the happiness in his sparkling hazel eyes. The sight made my heart soar—I was ecstatic that I made him so happy.

He held both sides of my face in his hands and pulled my forehead to rest on his.

"I love you so much, Julie."

I smiled down at him and pressed my lips up against his firmly.

I laughed light-heartedly, instantly feeling all of the worries and fears from the past weeks float away from me. I couldn't remember why I had ever felt uncertain or fearful in the first place. Right then and there, Cedric's arms were the only place I wanted to be.

"I love you too, Cedric."

-----

**A/N:** And there you have it…very likely the last fluffy Cedric/Juliet chapter. Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter. I hope you all review again…it always encourages me to get the next chapter up as soon as possible…and trust me, **you definitely want me to post the next chapter ;) **It's an exciting one.


	21. The Second Task

**A/N:** There are a total of 80 people who have this story in their favourites, and 122 who have it on story alert (thank all of you!). So far I receive an average of about 17 reviews per chapter. That's kind of a low number considering how many of you appear to be reading. Thus, I will be thoroughly disappointed in all of you if I receive anything less than 50 reviews for this chapter. It's a biggie, and I'd like to know your reactions.

Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE ---**

_The Second Task_

_Juliet Christie_

The date was February 23rd and I was on edge. The next day was the scheduled second task and I was dreading it. I knew my fears had been stupid the first time around and it was probably just as pointless to be worrying so much during the second run, but I couldn't help it. The first task had been _dragons_…I couldn't help but be terrified of what they would do to top that one.

Cedric wasn't worried at all. He had his plan perfectly laid out. He knew exactly what he was going to do. The only part that he was unsure about was the part of the song from the clue that spoke of stealing something from him. His only comment had been "I hope it's not my underwear. Twice in one year might be a bit overdone". He had been trying to lighten the mood. I hadn't found it funny.

Yes, Cedric's bubblehead charm had been practiced in the Prefect's bathroom on several occasions, and he was positive that he'd be able to perform flawlessly at the task. He had even done research about the Hogwarts' lake to find out what sorts of creatures were living there. He wanted to succeed this time around—to redeem himself of last time.

Even with all of Cedric's pre-meditation and preparation, I was in no way going to sit back and enjoy the tournament. Every spare moment I got was devoted to researching the lake as well, and any time I was around Cedric I would quiz him about useful spells and methods of avoiding Gryndillows and other foul underwater creatures. I'll admit he did seem well-prepared, but I was by no means going to shrug it off and leave it alone.

Frankly I was shocked by just how much I feared the second task. If I thought I had been worried the first time around, I had been wrong. The jitters I had felt at the first task had been nothing compared to what I felt during the second. I wasn't sure if it was because I thought the task itself was more dangerous, or if it was simply the fact that I had come to acknowledge the fact that I was in love with him. I thought it was probably the latter. Certainly after realizing you loved someone you were far more likely to want to keep them safe at all costs.

But even so, I would have thought the fact that I had been having mixed feelings toward Fred would have hindered the protectiveness I felt for Cedric. On the contrary, whatever those feelings happened to be seemed to strengthen the fear I had for Cedric and his involvement in the second task. Maybe I was feeling guilty due to the fact that I was enjoying not having to share Fred with Angelina anymore.

Whatever the case may have been, it didn't change the fact that I was dreading the second task.

Right up until the end of the day I spent every spare moment I had pouring over books I had borrowed from the library, searching for something that would be beneficial to Cedric. I also pondered over the meaning behind the clue. I searched through chapters upon chapters of information about merpeople…whether they liked to steal from humans…what their food preferences were…what type of water they liked to live in…how much light they got…nothing seemed to offer up any more help than what Cedric had already put together for himself.

Instead of reassuring me that all was going to be fine, the fact only made me worry even more. I couldn't help but feel something life-altering was going to happen the next day, and I was certain if it had to do with the Triwizard Tournament, that it couldn't be good.

"Juliet," I looked up from my stack of books on the coffee table in the middle of the common room to see Katie speaking to me from a few feet away, "Professor McGonagall wants to speak with you in her office."

I shot her a confused look. It was nearly curfew. "What does she want?"

Katie shrugged. "No idea. She just told me to fetch you for her."

I slammed my book shut, feeling slightly relieved that I had a distraction to keep me from worrying excessively about the second task.

"Well I guess I'd better not keep her waiting," I said, rising from my seat. "I'll be back," I said to the twins who were seated in armchairs next to the fire.

George nodded and gave me a wave as I headed out the portrait door.

"We'll wait up," I heard Fred promise.

…He probably shouldn't have.

-------

_Fred Weasley_

Juliet had been missing ever since McGonagall had asked to speak with her in her office. No one had seen her in hours, and I was beginning to get worried. George assured me she was probably with Cedric, wishing him good luck and all, but surely she would have returned. It was almost midnight and there was still no sign of her.

"Are you sure she didn't just sneak past the common room?" George suggested. "Maybe she's in bed right now."

I shook my head. "I would have noticed, George."

He rolled his eyes at me. "Of course you would have."

I glared at him. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"You know exactly what that's supposed to mean," George snickered.

"Would you let it go?" I grumbled, running my hands through my hair in frustration. "And even if I didn't notice she would have come say goodnight."

"Would she?"

I glared at him, unsure of exactly what he meant.

"Listen mate," he said. "I know you hate to hear this—trust me, I'm not too fond of the idea either—but she's probably with Cedric. It wouldn't be the first time she spent the night with him."

I glared angrily at him. "Julie is _not_ sleeping with him," I growled.

"I didn't say that," George defended. "But she _has_ spent the night at Hufflepuff before. That's probably what she's doing tonight."

"Why would she stay there tonight?" I asked. "The second task is tomorrow. She wouldn't want Diggory skimping out on his sleep."

"Fine, don't believe me on this. If she's not with Diggory then where is she?"

I pursed my lips angrily, knowing he was right. Where else would she have gone? She had been spending every free minute she had with him since they'd been together.

_Why should tonight be any different?_

But still, it killed me to think that she was spending the night with him…even if she wasn't _sleeping_ with him (which I was sure she was not)…the thought of her cuddled up in bed with him was gut-wrenching. As far as I knew Juliet had never spent the night in any guy's bed…apart from mine. Of course, I knew the odd days in the summer that the two of us had curled up in my bed together hadn't meant anything romantic-wise, but still…even back then, I always knew the two of us were different. We could share that kind of thing. I hated that Cedric had now moved in not only as the boyfriend, but had also taken away a lot of the things that Julie and me had shared in the past. Now that she was with him, she wouldn't snuggle up with me on the sofa by the fire like she used to. We didn't stay up all night long talking and laughing either…she did those things with _him_ instead.

George yawned and stood up, slapping me on the shoulder. He had failed to notice I was growing more and more depressed with each passing second.

"You coming upstairs?" he asked. "She'll be back in the morning in any case. There's no sense in waiting up for her all night."

My response was a grunt, but I stood up as well. I reckoned he was right. If Juliet was with the bloke, there really was no point in me waiting around for her. It's not like she wanted me waiting for her anyway…she was happy with him, and I had to deal with it.

I took one last hopeful glance at the portrait hole door, and when she didn't appear there I let out a sigh and followed George up the stairs to the dormitory.

Juliet didn't want me now.

I had missed my chance.

-------

George's reassurances proved to fall through. Stupid wanker had no idea what he was talking about. The next morning Juliet was still nowhere to be found. I was beginning to panic, seeing as she didn't meet up with us in the common room in the morning.

"She'll be at breakfast…she's probably going down to the Hall with Diggory," George said.

Wrong again, George! Bloody prat.

When we got down to the Great Hall Katie and Alicia both informed us that they hadn't seen Juliet all night. What's worse, Cedric came down and took a seat at the Hufflepuff table, and Julie was not with him.

I watched as Diggory sat down. He scanned the Gryffindor table and his eyes landed on me and George. His lips pursed and he did another scan of the Hall. He was looking for her too.

"George, Jules isn't with Diggory," I said, nodding in the direction of Hufflepuff.

George followed my gaze. His eyes widened in surprise. He looked worried. _'Bout time._

"Where is she?" he asked. He sounded concerned.

"Gee I don't know George. Maybe you should have listened to me earlier…then perhaps she wouldn't be missing right now," I said harshly.

"Where do you think she could have gotten to?" George asked. "You think she was _abducted_ by someone?" His tone was sarcastic now.

"Well I don't know. I don't see her, do you?"

"Relax, mate. She's around somewhere. She'll be there at the task for sure. She wouldn't want to miss Diggory in action," George said.

It didn't make me feel any better, but he was probably right. There was no way Juliet was going to miss watching Diggory's task. She'd definitely be there. I tried to relax. She was around. No big deal, she would be there.

Shortly after breakfast every student in the Great Hall left to dress warmly for the second task. George and I returned to our dormitory with Lee to pull on jumpers over our clothes and grab hats. The February air was frigid and biting. I found myself daydreaming of cuddling Juliet close outside in the cold…. I mentally scolded myself. She was with Cedric. I was only making it harder for myself by allowing my brain to fantasize.

"We're supposed to be gathering at the lake," Lee said as the three of us headed back down through the common room. I found myself frowning at the fact that Juliet was not standing alongside Alicia and Katie.

_Where did that girl get to?_

"I wonder why?" George mused as the girls joined us. Each of them was bundled up in winter clothing, and Alicia immediately snuggled herself under George's left arm, slipping her arm around his waist. The sight made me frown. Seeing happy couples together made me miserable. Even when I had been with Angelina I hated the physical interaction. She wasn't the person I had wanted to be with. On top of that she had lied to me about Juliet…I definitely made the right decision in dumping her. But still…seeing the happiness between George and Alicia made me infinitely envious.

My mood only darkened further when our group was joined by Ethan—Diggory's friend and Katie's sort-of boyfriend…or were they together now? Doesn't matter. The two flirted so much that it made me nauseous.

Groaning inwardly at how quickly the day had deteriorated into a horror story, I slowed my pace, allowing the happy couples to take the lead. Instead I fell back with Lee, who had frighteningly seemed to become _my_ better half.

_Cringe._

"What do you reckon they'll have the champions do?" Lee asked as we followed the long train of students who were making their way out onto Hogwarts grounds.

"Hopefully something dangerous," I said dryly.

Don't judge me. I'm actually not that cruel. I wouldn't want Diggory getting himself mortally injured…just a little bit wounded. I wouldn't mind him losing just a bit of his pride. I'm jealous…it's not a crime.

Of course, then Juliet would worry and make a fuss over him, and that might be too disgusting and painful to endure…

"If it weren't dangerous it wouldn't be the Triwizard Tournament," Lee pointed out.

_Good point. _Maybe I would get to enjoy just a little bit of humiliation on Diggory's part. There wasn't any harm in him getting knocked down a peg. Juliet would still adore him, and I'd still be alone, but it would make me feel just a tad bit better. That was really all I could ask for at that point anyway.

"How long do you reckon that Fleur girl will last through this one?" Lee asked as we rounded the corner toward the lake. There were stands erected there. Obviously this thing was taking place in the water…

"I'd wager ten Galleons she doesn't make it past twenty minutes," I said with a chuckle. She didn't seem like the swimming type, and now that the lake was in sight I was sure the task was going to involve some sort of underwater activity.

"That long, eh?" Lee mused. "I would have gone with less."

"Want to put a couple Sickles on it?" I offered, knowing full well that Lee would be up for a bit of gambling. Of course, after the Bagman issue I didn't actually have anything to be spending on bets, but Lee didn't have to know that. "I bet Frenchie comes in last."

"I'd be a fool to bet against that," Lee laughed. "But I'll bet you Krum wins this one."

"Alright. My money's on Harry," I said.

"You're on," Lee agreed. "Krum wins and you owe me three Sickles. Harry wins and I owe you three."

Lee and I shook on it and hurried through the remaining steps to the stands where we took our spots as spectators.

The crowd grew quickly and soon we were standing amongst a sea of students. The stands were lined along the edge of the lake, and everyone had piled themselves in to stand watch over the four champions standing on the lowest platform. Juliet was still nowhere to be found.

George, Lee, Alicia, and I had situated ourselves on the ground level, nearest to the champions and the panel of judges. I could clearly see the look of pure terror on Harry's face, along with the worried but determined expression on Diggory's. I wondered briefly if he was as worried about Juliet as I was. I doubted it.

"Hope you can swim, Harry!" I yelled out, trying to clear my head and get into my usual state of mind. Harry jolted around and spotted me instantly at the front of the thick crowd of students. "I've got three sickles that say you win this thing!"

He gave me a very strained smile and turned back to stare out at the ominous-looking lake. I watched the back of Diggory's head, hoping he had heard me. Although I was well aware of the fact that he was a decent guy (as much as I hated to admit it), I wanted him to remain assured that I wasn't supporting him in the competition. I'll admit I was feeling fairly bitter, and taunting him was a bit low…but he had the girl, so I didn't seem the harm in getting some fun out of it too.

We waited a surprisingly long time for the task to begin…you would think the big-shot wizards would have had the thing under control and ready to go before they called the entire castle down to watch…Merlin. But once it had got underway, it turned out to be a remarkably boring event.

"Something was stolen from each of the champions last night. Something of value and deep personal importance to them," Dumbledore's voice boomed moments before the task was to begin. "They have exactly one hour to retrieve it from the lake. They will be awarded points based on the length of time they take in retrieving what has been stolen, as well as their methods in which to do so."

The crowd cheered and clapped as the task was commenced and the four champions dove into the lake. Harry was the least graceful, but I stood by my decision to bet against Lee, despite Krum's perfect dive.

"That Delacour girl may not be any good at challenges," Lee said as the four of them disappeared into the water, "but Merlin, is she ever easy on the eyes!"

I sniggered at Lee. "Keep your mind out of the gutter."

"How do you know it's in the gutter?" Lee asked, staring out at the rippling water.

"It's always in the gutter."

Lee grinned. "No harm in looking."

I talked with Lee for the majority of the hour as we waited for the end of the task…all the while worrying excessively about Juliet and where she could have gotten to. I was definitely not focused at all, and continually scanned my eyes over the crowds of students in search of her.

As predicted, Fleur didn't last long into the challenge. I wasn't even certain how long she was under before she was pulled back out. From the sounds of it she couldn't get past the Gryndillows. I was mildly disappointed. I wanted Harry to win, but I would have found it funny if Diggory had been beaten by the princess.

It wasn't until with only two minutes left (and still no sign of Julie) that there was any hint of another champion reaching the surface. We watched as a disturbance from beneath the water caught the audience's attention. My eyes were immediately on the ripples of the Black Lake. There were murmurs of excitement from the crowd as everyone got ready to cheer for whoever it was who was resurfacing.

I kept my eyes on the water, more out of pure curiosity than anything else. I was more focussed on where in the world Juliet was to be worried about some stupid game. Thus, my mind was not in the right place at all as I watched Diggory emerge from the dark water.

_Figures. Not only does he make it out unharmed, he makes it out first._

"Well, looks like neither of us win this one, mate," Lee shouted over the noise.

The cheer from the surrounding students was ear-splitting. The Hogwarts supporters were screaming frantically for Diggory. People were jumping up and down all around me, and if it weren't for the fact that I was standing near the front I would not have seen who surfaced second—sputtering and also soaking wet—only moments after Diggory.

My head spun at the sight.

It was Juliet.

'_Something was stolen from each of the champions last night…something of value and deep personal importance to them…'_

I felt my stomach lurch and my heart twist up painfully.

_Perfect. _

_Just bloody perfect._

-----

_Juliet Christie_

I immediately regained consciousness as I broke the surface of the water. Cedric was there with me, holding me up as I got over the initial shock of what was going on. Of course, McG had briefly prepared me for what was going to happen, but regaining consciousness in the middle of a lake while sputtering for air was a bit mind-boggling.

"You alright?" Cedric called, and I realized how loud it was. People were cheering all around us from the shoreline.

I didn't reply—I felt quite incapable of speaking while I was gasping for air—and swam quickly toward the shore where there was a large dock set up in front of the stands full of people. Cedric swam with me, helping push me up onto the dock as Hagrid reached down and easily pulled me up out of the frigid water with one hand.

I hadn't realized how frighteningly cold the water was. It became apparent when I made it onto the dock and felt the frigid February air hit my wet body.

I was immediately covered in a thick blanket by someone nearby, and Cedric was given one as well. I could feel my teeth chattering almost immediately after I was out of the water, and my limbs felt numb from the cold.

Cedric was there, and he bent to place a kiss on my wet forehead. His hair was dripping, but there was a huge grin on his face.

"Didn't I tell you? Everything's fine," he said, grinning against the side of my head.

"I think I would have p-preferred not t-to have been included," I said, shivering with the cold. "The th-thing you'd m-m-miss most," I said, attempting sarcasm, "r-r-rubbish. N-no r-reason t-t-t-to kidnap me."

Cedric laughed heartily as the photographer from the _Daily Prophet _came over to ask for a picture.

"Can we get both of you together?" he grunted.

I had no idea why they wanted me in the picture as well, but I obliged, forcing myself to smile. I'm sure it turned out as more of a grimace, but whatever.

When I took a moment to look around at my surroundings I noticed Fleur Delacour was seated nearby. She was dripping wet and looked anxious and defeated.

"What happened to her?" I asked Cedric as the two of us were given a second blanket each to huddle under.

He shrugged. "Didn't make it through I guess," he said.

"So I guess that m-means you w-won this round," I said, smiling at the look of glee on his face.

"I think so," he said. "Harry could have made it back first, but he was sticking around down there for some reason…I'm not sure why."

"Was it s-scary down th-there?" I questioned, yelling over the noise as I continued to shiver. I was curious about the world I had just spent the last hour and a half in without being able to see it.

"I'm not planning a return trip," he replied with a smirk.

I was staring out at the crowd of students surrounding us when I spotted Fred and George. They saw me looking in their direction and waved me over frantically. Lee and Alicia were with them, exchanging animated high-fives with Cedric's Hufflepuff friends.

I turned back to Cedric. "I'm not n-needed for any more p-p-pictures, right?" I asked through chattering teeth.

He turned around to see what had caught my attention and chuckled.

"They look worried," he said, spotting the exasperated look on both of the twins' faces. "You'd better go reassure them."

"I'll s-see you when t-this is all over," I said to him, then took off in the direction of the twins as quickly as my frozen legs would carry me.

I reached them with some difficulty, having to squeeze my blanket-wrapped body in between the thick crowd of students. I stumbled a few times, but managed not to fall…this was a good thing, as I was unsure whether or not I'd be able to pull myself back up again afterwards.

"Julie! Are you all right? You had us worried sick!" George said, putting his hands on my shoulders.

"Oh please! You weren't worried in the slightest!" Fred disagreed. "You probably wouldn't have even noticed she was missing if I hadn't said something about it."

"Pish posh, I worried plenty."

My teeth were chattering as I allowed the boys to survey me for injury. I was sure they had been wondering where I had been all night, but obviously they were aware of the answer now.

Fred took his hat off and stuffed it onto my head. "Merlin! You're freezing!" he said, sounding positively appalled. He tugged on the strings to ensure my ears were covered securely.

"Well I was in t-t-the l-l-l-lake," I stuttered, shivering hard.

"Your lips are blue," George pointed out just as a deafening roar rippled through the crowd again. I turned my head to see who had made it out of the lake now.

"Krum!" Lee yelled, ecstatic, turning toward Fred. "I get one Sickle for that! He made it out before Harry."

Fred ignored him and pulled me against his chest. "Come here," he ordered, wrapping his arms around me securely. "You're going to get sick."

I shivered again, feeling only slightly warmer from the combination of the hat, the blanket, and Fred's body against mine. I felt almost certain that I was going to lose a few toes.

"I th-th-think I n-n-n-need to g-g-go b-back t-t-t-to the c-common room-m-m," I stuttered. I felt like I was feeling colder and colder by the second. I shouldn't have agreed to do the task…it had been a stupid idea. Cedric could have rescued Ethan or Codie instead and left me standing in the stands substantially less cold.

Fred looked at me, debating whether or not it was a good idea to manoeuvre me back through the crowd of rowdy students. It only took him half a second of staring at my pale face before he nodded and turned me in the direction of the castle.

"I'm taking Julie back inside," I heard him say to the others. "We'll see you later."

He didn't wait for a reply, but pushed through the students, calling out to them to make a path for us.

We went immediately back up to the common room. Fred wanted to take me to the hospital wing, but I insisted that all I needed was to curl up with some blankets by the fire. I was certain once I was warm again I'd feel fine.

Fred obliged, and hurried me up the tower and through the Fat Lady portrait. The fire was dimming, so Fred poked at it with his wand until it was roaring pleasantly again. I curled myself up on the squashy sofa nearest the fire and waited for him to sit down with me.

"Do you want me to go get you some cocoa?" he asked. It was adorable how worried he was about me. If I hadn't been so cold I would have found it endearing.

I shook my head weakly. "No. I don't w-want you to l-leave."

"I'd be fast," he promised.

I shook my head again. "Just st-stay here with me, 'kay?"

Fred obliged and sunk down next to me. I felt kind of bad for making him miss out on the end of the second task to take care of me, but I really didn't want to be left alone in the common room. It also felt peaceful and just…nice to have just the two of us for once, despite how awful I felt. We hadn't had any one-on-one time in forever.

"So…" he said as the two of us stared into the crackling fire. It was helping ease the numbness in my arms and legs, but I was still fiercely cold, despite the fact that I had changed my clothing as soon as I got inside. "Did you get to see any of what happened in the lake?"

I shook my head weakly, allowing my cheek to make contact with Fred's shoulder as I cuddled into him. He felt so warm…I could feel my shivering subsiding, although my body didn't feel any warmer.

"I was under a spell," I mumbled quietly. "I couldn't see or hear anything."

"Do you know who else was down there?" he asked as he eased his arms around my body. If I didn't know any better I would have said he was reluctant…or nervous.

"There was your brother, Hermione, and a little blonde girl I assume was Fleur's sister," I told him, allowing my arms to find their way around his torso. Fred had laid a blanket over me, and I shifted it so we were cuddled beneath it together.

"Hermione?" he asked. "Wow…I didn't realize Hermy and Krum were so close…"

I shrugged. "Maybe they aren't," I suggested. "McGonagall said they chose people whom the champions care deeply about. She didn't say anything about it being the other way around."

"Mmm…" Fred mumbled. He sounded doubtful. I guess I could understand why. Harry and Ron obviously cared very deeply for each other—they were like brothers. Same would go for Fleur and her sister…and of course, me and Cedric…

I fell into silence as I stared at the dancing flames of the fire across from us and enjoyed the sensation of the feeling returning to my fingers and toes. Fred was quiet too, and I listened to the deep, methodical sound of his breathing.

"You had me worried sick you know," he said suddenly.

"Hmm?" I asked, my position remaining unchanged.

"When you didn't come back last night," he clarified. "And then this morning when I couldn't find you…I was worried."

I lifted up my head at his statement, cocking it to one side. "Really? Why?"

He scoffed. "No one knew where you were."

"And what? You thought I was in some sort of trouble?"

He shrugged, and I noticed very suddenly how intent his gaze was. His crystal clear blue eyes were locked with mine. "I was worried you might be."

I stared at him, feeling very numb, but not at all from the cold. It was my senses that felt numb. My nerves didn't seem to be working…my brain was frozen. I knew I wasn't feeling right…my body seemed to have lost all feeling. I knew I was cold, and yet I didn't feel it. I was instead much more focussed on Fred than my personal well-being.

"Well…aside from being frozen solid…I feel…perfect," I said. My voice was barely above a whisper as my eyes bore into his.

"You feeling any warmer yet?" he asked, removing one of his hands from around my waist. He pulled his hat off of my damp hair and ran his fingers through my locks carefully. He stopped, instead placing his warm hand against my cheek.

In that instant when his skin touched mine, something changed. There was electricity in the air very suddenly and without warning. I was hyper-aware of every spot on my body where my skin connected with his…his hand on my face, my arms around his body, my legs brushing up against his…

I reached up and placed my cool hand over his. He didn't react to the movement…his eyes stayed locked on mine.

I felt my lips part slightly as his thumb brushed across the corner of my mouth. He was immediately distracted, his eyes darting down to stare at my lips. I felt my heartbeat pick up.

"I'm…getting there," I whispered, barely aware that I was speaking at all. Not a single thought was running through my head. I was running on pure instinct and natural reaction.

Fred swallowed, and his eyes found mine again as I let my hand drop. His hand didn't move from my face, but he began rubbing my cheek in soft circles with his thumb as his hand travelled excruciatingly slowly from my cheek to my chin, and then to my neck…

I found myself studying every detail of his face. I took in every strand of his red hair, every freckle dotted across his nose and cheeks…every curve of his strong facial features…the precise shade of blue of his eyes…the exact shape of his lips…

"Fred…" his name escaped my lips in a whisper, and his eyes moved down to my mouth once more.

Each second that passed between the time we sat staring at each other and the time it took his lips to meet mine felt like an eternity. I could count every one of his eyelashes…every single one of his freckles, before our lips touched.

When they did, it was pure bliss. I was completely lost to my actions. I was both hyper-aware of what was going on and also extremely ignorant to the world around me. My lips on Fred's was all I could think about.

Although I was sure he had been the one to lean in—the one to initiate the kiss—I was the one to deepen it. My tongue traced along his bottom lip softly and I pulled myself closer to him, my arms still locked around his torso.

Fred's mouth opened invitingly, and his tongue found mine as our lips moved in synchronization. His hand moved to my still-damp hair and pulled my face closer to his.

I surprised myself when a moan sounded from my throat, but I wasn't surprised enough to stop. Fred seemed to take that as encouragement, and the kiss only grew more passionate.

His hands were holding me firmly to him as I manoeuvred my body (no longer feeling cold from the lake) onto his. I straddled his lap—never breaking the kiss—and my hands travelled up his chest and into his hair at the back of his neck. His hands were on my back, pulling me to him with irresistible force. I wouldn't have been able to pull away if I wanted to…and trust me, I didn't want to.

I was breathing heavily and small noises were escaping my mouth as I pressed my lips against his forcefully. I never wanted to stop kissing him…

Even so, I did.

I pulled my lips reluctantly away from Fred's and stared down at him intently. I didn't move from my spot on his lap, and his hands remained on my hips, holding me firmly in place.

I didn't speak, not out of fear of what we had just done, and not because I didn't know what to say, but because there wasn't anything _to_ say. My brain was frozen in place. No thoughts ran through my head, thus I didn't feel the need to say anything at all. I just sat there, my hands on his neck and his on my back…my skin was stinging from the cold in a way that made me certain I should have gone to the hospital wing…but I didn't care.

We sat staring at each other like that in silence as our breathing slowed back down to regular pace. My eyes never left his.

When the rest of Gryffindor began making their way toward the common room we were given plenty of warning. We could hear them from down the corridor—they were cheering and yelling at the tops of their lungs.

Still acting without thought, I bent my head and placed another soft, lingering kiss on Fred's lips before I eased myself off of his lap. He let his hands drop to his sides as I removed myself, his expression unreadable.

I picked up the forgotten blanket from the floor and positioned myself next to him again, letting my head fall back onto his shoulder. He didn't hold me like he had previously. He seemed frightened to move.

I closed my eyes and tried to block out the building noise coming from the students just outside and focused on the beating of Fred's heart as I marvelled at the bizarre feeling of my skin tingling with cold.

Neither of us said anything as Gryffindor came pouring in through the Fat Lady portrait.

-------

**A/N:** I wanted to let everyone know that my one-short, Fred-centric story _Cuddling_ has been nominated in the _Quibbler Awards_. You can vote for _Cuddling_ on the _Quibbler Awards _website (the link is on my profile, or you can Google search _Quibbler Awards_). Voting doesn't start until the 10th of January and runs from January 10th to January 20th. If any of you have read the story (or will read the story) and enjoyed it, then you can vote for it under "Best Fluff" and/or "Best One-shot"!

Oh, and of course I remind you all that I want a ton of reviews for this chapter! Ha. Thanks for all the support, as always.


	22. Unexpected

**A/N:** Not quite the number of reviews I wanted for the last chapter, but I won't hold it against you. Here's the next chapter…I'm getting anxious about finishing this story now. It's winding down pretty rapidly. I know a lot of you wanted to see another Cedric/Juliet fluff chapter, and my original intention was to do that with this chapter, but it ended up going in a different direction…

I hope you all enjoy this one, and the next one should be up really soon as it's already written and ready to go.

Also, a big thank-you to anyone who has voted for my one-shot _Cuddling_ in the _Quibbler Awards_…I appreciate all of the support. If you haven't read it, go read it and vote for it on the _Quibbler Awards_ website.

And now, on with the chapter…

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize, including certain plot lines, characters, and settings, belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO ---**

_Unexpected_

_Juliet Christie_

Guilty.

If you could sum up the definition of Juliet Christie in one word, at that moment, _guilty_ would be it.

I had never felt more horrible about myself in my entire life. Right then and there I hated myself. I was disturbed by my behaviour and in disbelief that I had acted so awfully.

I had no idea what I was thinking. That was the problem…at the time I _hadn't_ been thinking…not clearly, anyway.

I wasn't sure what had caused me to do it. I didn't know if it was the pent-up emotions that had been rattling around inside of me for so long, or if it was just the disorientation that came with the second task and being sick out of my mind afterwards. It could have been a combination of the two. What I knew for certain was I needed to make sure I didn't lose my head like that again. Cedric didn't deserve it, and neither did Fred. And the guilt definitely wasn't something I was willing to live with every day.

I knew what I had to do, obviously, although it definitely wasn't a good thought to have looming over my head. I knew I needed to have a calm and honest conversation with both Fred and Cedric (separately, of course), and I knew I had to do it sooner rather than later.

The difficult part was the fact that I wasn't sure what I was going to say. Honesty was the easiest part of the plan…did I love Cedric? Yes. Did I still have feelings for Fred? Yes. The problem was…what came after that?

I wanted to make certain that both Fred and Cedric understood the situation I was in…of course, that wasn't the easiest thing to do considering even _I_ was having a difficult time understanding it. Fortunately, the chance for me to talk it out with Fred arrived quite soon after the incident occurred between us…I managed to land myself in the hospital wing almost immediately after I had nearly thrown myself on him, which gave me plenty of time to get it all out on the table…

That night after the second task, Fred took me up to the hospital wing to see Madame Pomfrey. I was in a right state half-way through Harry's celebratory party in the common room (he managed second place in the second task for excellent moral fibre), and I had a terrible fever. I was so disoriented that I hadn't even realized where we were headed until I heard Madame Pomfrey's voice as Fred kicked open the hospital wing door.

There was a lot of bustling around me as Fred and Pomfrey manoeuvred me around and grabbed hold of different limbs. There were hands feeling my forehead and pulling my messy hair out of my eyes, but I felt unable to do anything to help them as I hung there limply.

"How long has she been like this?"

I was in a daze as Fred helped me through the doors. I tried to focus on the sound of their voices in order to keep from passing out. I hadn't realized how awful I had been feeling. I had been rather distracted by Fred and hadn't managed to focus much on the fact that I felt like death.

"She's been sick since they pulled her out of the Black Lake during the second task," Fred told her.

I tried not to fade out, although my body wanted to collapse and my mind was shutting down.

"That was hours ago! You should have brought her to me straight away!" Pomfrey scolded.

My eyes were closed, so it wasn't until I felt myself being laid onto a bed that I knew I was inside the wing.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize—"

"Her fever is skyrocketing. She'll need to stay here for the night."

There was more bustling, along with a rustle of papers.

"Can I stay with her?"

I could hear bottles clinking together.

"You'll have to," Madame Pomfrey said, and I felt a small amount of relief knowing I wouldn't be left in the dark room alone. "I'll have to give her something to combat the fever, and some Pepper-Up Potion. She'll be awake and restless all night. I'll trust you to make sure she stays here and doesn't wander off."

Pomfrey must have left the room because the talking stopped and I heard the sound of footsteps hurrying away from me. By that point I was shivering again, and convulsing quite violently. I could no longer pay attention to Fred's presence in the room, although I was certain he was standing over me.

"Juliet, its okay," Fred said, and I felt his hand grip my arm firmly. "I'm right here."

I heard Pomfrey return and felt myself being pulled up into a sitting position. I couldn't bring myself to open my eyes, and I was still shaking.

"You're going to have to try to hold still, dear," Madame Pomfrey's voice said. "You need to drink this so you'll feel better. Mr. Weasley, you may have to hold her head steady."

I tried not to shake as Fred's hands moved to my face to steady my convulsing. Pomfrey was there in a moment's notice, holding a glass to my lips. I willed myself to be steady and gulped down the vile tasting liquid until she pulled away the empty glass.

I felt the potion move down my throat painfully and travel into each of my limbs as I began to cough violently. As it did I felt myself steadying almost immediately. My whole body heated up almost unbearably to the point where I felt like screaming before the feeling instantly vanished.

I opened my eyes, feeling completely normal and suddenly extremely well.

"Was that really necessary?" I asked, clearing my throat as Fred let his hands fall away from my face. "Couldn't you have found a less disgusting way of making me feel better?"

Madame Pomfrey straightened up. "Well, now that that's all settled, I'll be heading off to bed, assuming there will be no further interruptions tonight. Mr. Weasley will be staying here with you. You won't be sleeping tonight Miss Christie, but I expect once the Pep-up potion wears out you'll get a proper day's sleep. When you waken up again you should feel good as new."

"Can't I go back to my room then?" I asked. I'd rather be in my own bed than the cold, dark hospital wing.

"You must remain here so I can monitor you. It wouldn't do well for you to go wandering back to your tower now. You'd feel perfectly fine and end up passing out in the corridors on the way to your morning classes," Pomfrey explained. "Mr. Weasley will keep you company for the night. You can go back after you've had a decent sleep."

I looked back at Fred, expecting to see some sort of exasperated expression of his displeasure for having to spend the night looking after me…but I found no such thing. Fred looked immensely relieved…but also frightened. It was only then that I remembered what had gone on between us in the common room. My stomach lurched.

What had I done?

"I'd appreciate it if you'd keep yourselves quiet. I need my sleep as much as anyone else."

Fred and I didn't say anything as Pomfrey hurried away, her slippers making nearly no noise on the stone floor as she left.

I sighed, looking up at him through the darkness, watching him stare at me with obvious discomfort.

_Here goes nothing…_

_-------_

_Fred Weasley_

She looked beautiful as she lay there in the dark, despite how sick she was…despite the wavy mess her hair had become from the day…despite the off-shade of her skin due to the cold…and despite the fact that she was wearing one of George's old jumpers that was far too big on her. She was, without a doubt, beautiful. Her eyes were wide and alert, and her cheeks were flushed from the fever the potion was beginning to fight out of her. She hadn't said anything since Madame Pomfrey left the room, but I was terrified for the moment when she did start to speak. There was no doubt in my mind what she was going to say to me, and I definitely did not want to hear it. Instead I just wanted to focus my attention on her. She was beautiful…beautiful and perfect…aside from the fact that she belonged to someone else.

She opened her mouth to say something, and I braced myself for the inevitable blow. I was expecting the words she was about to say. They were predictable from the moment her lips touched mine earlier in the night…but although I could see this conversation coming, I knew it would never have stopped me from doing it. I'd kiss her again a million times if I could, even with the knowledge that she'd regret it afterwards.

The words that came next proved I was right.

"I'm sorry, Fred."

I cleared my throat uncomfortably, trying to force back the disappointment radiating from every nerve in my body.

"What are you sorry for?" I asked her, although I already knew the answer.

"I shouldn't have," she said. "You and me today…it was wrong."

Again, predictable.

I frowned at her through the darkness. I knew it was wrong, and I knew she knew it was wrong as well. Of course it was. She was with Cedric, and she cared about him. He cared about her too. Nothing about what had happened between Juliet and I was right. But that didn't mean it wasn't _good_. And I knew somewhere in her she had thought it was good, too.

"You wanted to," I pointed out quickly, sounding like a complete prick as I said it. I wasn't sure _why_ I said it. There was only one way the conversation was going to go, and it wasn't in my favour. There was no reason for me to make her even more upset about it.

She closed her eyes and let her head fall onto her pillow and I immediately felt bad for rubbing in the fact that she had enjoyed kissing me. She looked frustrated, angry, and…torn. I took small comfort in that, knowing that at least a small part of her wanted to be with _me_ instead of _him_. I wizened up, however, and opted not to point out that fact to her.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "But it can't happen."

"I know," I told her, attempting to brush off her words easily. I'm fairly certain she could see right through me. She was my best mate, after all. She knew when I was lying, and although my tone of voice said I was okay, she'd know better. "You're with Cedric—"

"I love him, Fred."

My heart sank. Of course I knew it. Of course she did. I could see it…bloody hell, anyone with eyes could see they loved each other! I think I knew it before even she did.

But still, the pain from hearing it was nearly unbearable.

"Yeah," I choked out, "yeah I know."

"You and I…" she started. She was bizarrely calm and unfazed. It must have been the potion. From knowing her as long as I had, I knew this sort of thing was not easy for her. "We could have had something before…but now—"

I cleared my voice loudly, uncomfortably. "Yeah, I understand," I told her. I didn't really want to hear any more. I didn't want to hear about the fact that she was choosing Cedric…the bloody git.

There was a pause where I tried to force the pain out of my body. She didn't need to be upset any more than she already was. I didn't want to place the burden of my hurt on her along with everything else. It was my own bloody fault she wasn't with me. I could have had her if I had only smartened up.

She cleared her throat. "I—uh…I think I need to break up with Cedric."

My head jolted up, and I stared at her through the darkness, startled. _That_ was definitely not something I had been expecting.

"You—you _what_?"

"Cedric," she repeated, running a hand through her messy hair—still tangled from the second task—with a sigh. "I think I have to leave him."

I was flabbergasted as she looked down at her hands, avoiding my gaze.

"What…why?" I asked dumbly.

She looked up at me incredulously, like I was missing something obvious.

"How could I possibly stay with him?" she asked.

"But…I thought you said…you love—"

"I know what I said," she interrupted hurriedly, as if she didn't want to hurt me by letting me say the words. "But none of this is fair to him…or to you…or to me for that matter!"

She had definitely confused me.

"That's bullocks and you know it, Jules," I sad before I could stop myself.

She gave me a confused look. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"_It's not fair_," I repeated, mimicking her with frightening accuracy. "Of course it's fair!"

"Fred, what—?"

"I deserve anything and everything you throw at me," I told her, although I knew for my own benefit I should have shut up and let her finish. Who was I to tell the girl she _shouldn't_ break up with Diggory? It's what I wanted all along…_shut up, Fred, shut up! _"I treated you horribly, so of course it's _fair_ that you're with that ruddy idiot now!"

She sat up in her bed, suddenly looking very angry.

_Great going, Fred._

"First of all, Cedric is not a _ruddy idiot_, Fred! And second—"

An annoyed voice and angry footsteps alerted us to the fact that Pomfrey was back. She was looking extremely displeased as she re-entered the room in her robe and sad-looking slippers that had seen too many days. She glared at us sternly. I marvelled at the transformation her facial features had made from the removal of her make-up she had been wearing when we had first made it to the hospital wing. The contrast was startling.

"If you two cannot be discreet then I am going to have to send Mr. Weasley back to his tower. Do I make myself clear?"

Over-tired Pomfrey was definitely a frightening sight. Juliet and I nodded dumbly and she turned and headed back to her room, muttering irritably under her breath as she went.

I turned back to Juliet, momentarily forgetting our argument and smirked. She returned it with a nervous laugh at Pomfrey's expense. She regained herself quickly, however, and went back to scowling at me.

"How can you say any of this is _fair_, Fred?" she asked pointedly. "You're miserable, Cedric's oblivious to the fact that I've got feelings for someone else, and I'm driving myself insane going back and forth between being madly in love with him to doubting myself entirely and wishing I was with you!"

I stared at her, dumbfounded once more as I felt my heart leap idiotically in my chest.

"You…you wish you were with me?" I asked, and I could feel a big stupid grin form on my face.

She rolled her eyes at me, apparently taking my moronic smile for sarcasm. I was thankful for that, as I wasn't too keen on her knowing the exact effect she had on me. I forced my smile into a frown immediately.

"I can't keep doing this," she said quietly, staring down at her hands again.

I immediately sobered at the sight of how sad she was. It was pathetic, really. This girl had both Diggory and I running around like mad after her, and _she_ was the biggest wreck of us all. Although, I suppose wanting two different blokes was enough to mess with anyone's head.

I sighed and went to sit next to her on the bed. She shifted herself over so there was room for us both, placing us shoulder-to-shoulder comfortably.

"So what _are_ you going to do?" I asked, trying to keep my voice light and curious. I knew she would appreciate me playing down the situation. It was complicated enough without me sticking my fat head in the way to let her know I was upset too.

"Aside from breaking up with Diggory, you mean?" she asked, and I smirked at her use of _Diggory_ rather than _Cedric_. It had been a long time since I'd heard that from her.

I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back against the wall behind me casually.

"Do you really reckon you _have_ to break the bloke's heart?" I questioned easily. "I mean, if it's what you want, I can keep my mouth shut, and Diggory can remain oblivious. Saves you getting your hands dirty."

I was teasing her just a little bit, but the question was intended to be serious. I did want to know if leaving him was _actually_ what she wanted, or if she only thought she _had_ to do it because of what had happened between the two of us.

"I think I've got to leave him," she said, still staying surprisingly calm.

"Is that what you want?" I pressed, fearing the answer.

She was silent for a moment, mulling over her thoughts.

"I want him to know the truth," she said, "and I don't want to keep flipping back and forth, so…yeah, I guess. It is what I want."

I pursed my lips and frowned.

"And then what?" I asked.

I turned to look at her and saw her shrug.

"Nothing?" she said, completely unsure of herself.

My frown deepened.

"What about…you know…the other one?" I asked, feeling it was safer to continue with the buddy-buddy conversation we had going. It seemed less complicated when I took myself out of the equation. I tried to be impartial, like I would be if I weren't involved in the situation at all.

She let out a small laugh and shook her head.

"Well…" she started, turning her head slightly to look up at me. I was glad to see a small smile on her face. It definitely beat tears…I hated when she cried. "The 'other one' knows how I feel. Hopefully he understands that I've got a lot on my plate to sort through before I get myself into anything else."

I smirked down at her and unfolded my arms to ruffle her hair affectionately. She swatted my hand away.

"I bet he'll understand just fine."

She smiled at me and nudged me in the gut with her elbow.

"Thanks, Fred."

I grinned down at her and watched in amazement as she grinned back.

"You're welcome, love."

We sat their grinning at each other fondly for a few moments before she placed a kiss on my shoulder and snuggled her head into my arm.

"I love you, Fred Weasley," she said happily, and I rolled my eyes, unable to hide the glowing smile on my face. I knew when the potion wore off she would feel anything but happy over ending it with Cedric, but I was content enough to enjoy her happiness while it lasted.

"I love you too, Juliebell."

She grinned up at me, and then straightened up, turning her body toward me. She tugged my folded arms apart, taking hold of my hand in hers firmly. She settled her head back down onto my shoulder and the two of us stared down at our interlocked hands fondly.

I guess not everything works out the way you expect it to.

-------

_Juliet Christie_

Breaking up with Cedric turned out to be the hardest thing I had ever done. It was heart-wrenching and nearly impossible to get through. I cried through the entire thing and barely managed to hold myself together.

I told him everything, starting with how much I loved him. That was probably the hardest part to make him understand. It was difficult to express to him why I couldn't stay in a relationship when we both knew I honestly and truly did love him.

He fought with me about it, telling me I wasn't making any sense. At first he thought it was one of my immature jokes, but by the time the tears started to fall the reality of it became clearer.

The worst was the way he looked when I told him about Fred.

"You kissed him?" he asked. His voice sounded far-off, like he wasn't really hearing me.

I nodded my head, looking down at the floor with watery eyes. I was ashamed, to say the least, and the hurt on his face caused the guilt to seep into every nerve of my body. I felt awful.

"Yes, Cedric," I said, trying to remain calm. I knew ending it was something that had to be done. It was the best for everyone. I was a mess, and Cedric didn't deserve someone who wasn't certain what they wanted.

"And…that's why you're ending it?" he questioned. His expression was heart-broken, but his voice was unnervingly calm. It frightened me.

I didn't answer right away, so he continued.

"You don't think we could just work through this?" he asked. "I mean…you came forward and told me. You said you're sorry…you regret it, right?"

I sighed. That was a difficult question to answer. Part of me really and truly _did_ regret it, but the other part of me knew that something needed to happen to make me take action. Harbouring feelings for Fred while dating Cedric was unhealthy for me, and hard on everyone…if kissing Fred was what needed to happen to make me realise the mess I was in, then I was glad it had happened.

"I regret the circumstances under which it happened," I said. "I regret hurting you…yes."

"Well why does this have to end, then?" Cedric asked. "I can forgive you, and we can work through it. Worse things can happen."

"Cedric," I said, sighing again. I knew I was going to have to hurt him. That was difficult, especially when he was being so understanding and forgiving. I could feel myself tearing up again. "I do love you—"

"Then stay with me," he interrupted, taking my hands in his. It was impossible then not to let the tears fall.

"I can't, Cedric," I said softly. "It's not fair to you…or to Fred…or me," I told him.

He stared at me seriously for a minute.

"You have feelings for him."

I pursed my lips and nodded.

"Do you love him?" he asked me, lifting my chin in order to force me to look him in the eyes…something I had been avoiding.

"No," I said quickly. "No…I don't…I don't know."

I could see the pain ripple through him and he gripped my hands harder.

"But you love me."

"Yes, Cedric," I said, and I knew if I was going to actually go through with breaking up with him then I had to end the conversation. Cedric wanted to be with me, I knew that, but if I stayed with him he would quickly realize that it wasn't working out. I couldn't ask him to stay with me knowing part of me wanted to be with someone else. "But I can't stay with you."

Tears were streaming down my face, and I lost all control over attempting to stop it from happening.

"I'm sorry, Cedric…but you can't possibly want this," I said. "You deserve someone who knows what she wants. I'm too confused and too jumbled up right now…I need to step back…figure things out."

"Are you leaving me for him?" he questioned.

"No," I said. It was the truth. I didn't intend to start anything up with Fred after leaving Cedric. I truly did need to give myself a break and straighten out my own feelings before anything else happened. In fact, I didn't have a plan at all. I intended to let go and have things work out for themselves. "This is what _I_ need, Cedric. It's not about Fred, honest."

He nodded, looking down at the floor, seeming to accept my answer for the truth. I took a deep breath, calming myself enough to get through the remainder of the conversation.

"Okay," Cedric said, and I knew the hard part was over. Cedric had accepted what I was saying, and I could tell that he wasn't going to argue with me about it any more. I was relieved, as I didn't think I'd be able to form coherent sentences if he tried to fight for us any longer. It was hard enough to leave him without hearing how much he loved me.

"You know this really isn't how I thought we would end up," I said, trying to make my voice light and casual. I didn't want things to end badly between the two of us, and I sincerely hoped he didn't want that to happen either.

"Me neither," he said, letting go of my hands to scratch the back of his neck awkwardly. "Although…I always knew there was something with him. Part of me thought I was stupid for trying to date you."

He gave me a half-smile to let me know he wasn't angry, and I smiled weakly back at him.

"I'm glad you did though," I told him honestly. "And I reckon there isn't a sweeter guy on earth than you, Cedric."

He grinned at me and tugged me into a hug, locking his arm around my neck and placing a kiss at the top of my head.

"I'll miss you, Julie."

I smiled into his shirt as the tears began to fall once more.

"I'm not going anywhere, Ced. This doesn't mean we aren't still friends."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Cedric said. "I think breaking up with me automatically reinstates the house rivalry between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff." I could tell by his grin that he wasn't serious.

He released me from his grip and I gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Well in that case, I can't promise you more of your clothing won't go missing in the middle of the night."

"I thought that wasn't you," he smirked at me.

"I didn't say it was."

Cedric rolled his eyes at me and we shared a brief laugh. All traces of my tears were gone, although I was sure they'd show up again once I had gotten away from him. I wasn't hopeful enough to believe that I could escape the sadness that went hand-in-hand with losing someone you loved. I just had to remind myself that it was for the best. No one knew what was going to happen in the future, but ending it with Cedric was what was right then. If something changed down the line, then so be it.

I felt awkward lingering there in the corridor after the joke had faded away. I cleared my throat anxiously.

"I'm uh…going to head back up to Gryffindor now," I said awkwardly, trying not to let myself grow embarrassed. It was a difficult thing to achieve. "If you need me, you know where to find me."

"Sure thing," Cedric said with a nod.

I turned to leave, but Cedric stopped me.

"And…you know…it's my last year here, but even after Hogwarts…if I ever feel like asking you out somewhere…"

I grinned at him and nodded. "Yeah," I said. "Who's to say what'll happen?"

He smiled back at me and I was happy to see he looked okay. I knew despite everything we had been through that we'd be able to pull through as friends, if nothing else.

And I left him there in the corridor, feeling his gaze watching me as I went. I turned to him briefly as I headed toward Gryffindor.

"See you around, Ced," I said with a wink.

Cedric smiled back at me, and I felt my heart lighten. Even despite the sadness I inside from watching something so special to me end, I was content.

I knew at that moment, as I spotted Fred, George, and Lee waiting to tug me off to the kitchens for a snack, that everything was going to be okay.

…

Unfortunately, for me, the feeling didn't last long.

-------

**A/N:** Okay, so I had a really hard time writing this chapter. I had the next one written before this one, so I knew where I wanted to end up, but I wasn't sure how I was going to get there, so I'm not 100% happy with this chapter. I'm pretty much just getting more and more anxious about finishing this story, and I'm ready to move on from it.

Leave me a review, because I want to get the next chap up in the next two or three days. Thanks guys.


	23. Too Late

**A/N: **As promised, here's the next chapter after three days. Please review at the end.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize, including certain plot lines, characters, and settings, belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE ---**

_Too Late_

_Juliet Christie_

The end of the school year was fast approaching. Our end of term tests had been completed—much to everyone's delight—and we were free to enjoy the last of the school year without any worry whatsoever. Fred and George were particularly delighted that they had passed their Apparition tests. They were beyond excited to be able to use magic at home, and Apparition was one of the most exciting tricks in the book. I had passed too, but unlike the twins I tended to be a bit more discreet. I didn't find constant magic to be a necessity. Plus, I much preferred sneaking around as a cat to the element of surprise that Apparition offered.

It was true, I was elated over the fact that the school year was rapidly coming to a close. Unfortunately, piled on top of the relief I was feeling was the horrible sadness breaking up with Cedric had left me with. He had continued to be fairly understanding and our casual conversations remained friendly (albeit—a little awkward), but I couldn't help but feel rotten for hurting him like I did. I tried not to worry too much about it, and hoped he was doing the same. I reckoned he wouldn't have a difficult time finding a distraction, as the third task was upon us in what felt like no time at all. The standings placed Harry and Cedric tied for first place. Krum was next in line, leaving Fleur in last (to absolutely no one's surprise).

Unfortunately, the fact that I had split from Cedric did absolutely nothing to ease the fear I had toward the third task. On top of feeling horrendous about hurting him in the break-up, I was also feeling gut-wrenchingly nervous. The worst part was, because I was no longer the girlfriend, I felt reluctant to speak my mind to Cedric. It was no longer my place to fuss over him, thus I had to suffer in silence.

Fred and George spent countless hours trying to assure me that everything was fine. Both of them knew without having to be told that I was worried about Cedric. It was obvious to all of my friends, as I began to tense up more and more with each day as the task grew ever closer.

"Julie, love, why are you so worried?" Fred asked on the day of the task. "You've done this every time, and every time the champions have all been fine."

Fred's face was concerned, but also a little irritated. I tried to ignore it, but I knew the fact that I was still worrying over Cedric irked him a little bit. He understood my situation, obviously, but I didn't blame him for wanting to be rid of the constant reminder that I was still in love with Cedric, regardless of the fact that I had broken up with him. I tried to force my fears away, mostly out of consideration for Fred. I knew it hurt him to see me get so worked up.

Frighteningly, trying to be courageous failed miserably. I was hyperventilating. I could immediately tell that there was something going on with me that wasn't just nerves. Fred must have noticed too, because his hands were on my face in an instant. His cool skin felt good on my over-heated cheeks, but it did nothing to stop the horrible sensation coursing through my body.

"Fred," I gasped. "I really d-d-don't…I need to stop them."

Tears were streaming down my face. I had never had a panic attack before, but I knew I was having one then. I couldn't for the life of me stop shaking, and I felt like my head was going to explode from the stress. Something was definitely wrong.

"Juliet…remember how worried you were over the last two tasks?" he asked. "And everything turned out fine. You have nothing to worry about." The reassurance didn't help much, especially because Fred was beginning to look extremely worried as well.

His hands were in my hair then, resting at the base of my neck. He probably thought I was a freak—getting so worked up over a _game—_but I couldn't stop myself, and I was sure that this time there was something seriously wrong. I could feel it in every bone of my body. I felt like something terrible was going on that day.

"This is different," I said. "The last times were just worries…this time…I-I _feel_ like something bad is going to happen."

I was sobbing then, begging for Fred to take me seriously. I was _terrified_ over the task, and although I wasn't exactly certain why I felt that way, I needed him to believe me.

"Juliet…" the look on his face told me he was terrified…but I didn't think it was about the task…he was worried about me and my state of hysteria.

I shook my head frantically, clamping my eyes shut. "No, Fred, listen to me!"

"Juliet," he said calmly, wiping the tears off of my face, "I don't know what's gotten into you, but everything is going to be fine. Come get a seat with me and we'll watch the task."

"No!" I yelled pathetically. "I need to tell them! I need to warn Cedric—"

"Juliet, calm down!" he said, holding my face firmly in his hands and forcing me to look up at him through my blurred vision. I blinked back the unshed tears and tried desperately to make his face out amongst the haze. "Listen to me," he said sternly. "Everything is going to be fine. I promise you everything will be okay."

I wasn't paying attention to him anymore, because at that moment I spotted Cedric heading for the field and I bolted away from Fred. I half-expected him to come racing after me, but he stayed rooted to the spot, watching me go.

"Cedric!" I yelled, pushing myself as fast as I could go. "Cedric, stop! I need to talk to you!"

He stopped in his tracks, eyeing me warily. Although the two of us had been on fairly friendly terms, things were understandably awkward between us, and our conversations weren't the smoothest. I desperately hoped he would take me seriously, although I knew it would be a long-shot.

"Juliet…what is it?" he asked, looking at me with a slightly worried expression.

"The task," I said hurriedly, "you can't go through with it."

"What are you talking about?" he asked, sounding extremely perplexed. There was an undertone of annoyance there, too. It made my heart ache.

I suddenly realized how stupid I was going to sound trying to explain the situation to him. Fred hadn't understood and he knew me better than anyone did. Surely Cedric would think I was a nutter if Fred had.

"You can't go into that maze!" I said hurriedly. "Something awful is going to happen."

"_What_?" he asked, his voice dripping with disbelief. "What are you saying?"

"Cedric, I know this sounds stupid and I'm not making any sense, but you have to believe me!" I yelled.

He frowned at me.

"Believe you about what, Julie? You're not making any sense."

"Cedric, please, just trust me. You can't go into this challenge," I pleaded. "Please, don't go."

"What's wrong?" he asked. "What's wrong with the task?"

"I don't know," I said stupidly, "but I know you can't go into there."

He surprised me by rolling his eyes at me.

"Cedric—"

"You know what Juliet, bugger off," he said. "I don't know what you're playing at, but this has gone too far."

"Cedric, what—"

"No. I understand why you broke up with me…I don't even hold it against you, but why are you doing this? Are you just out to mess with my head now?"

"Cedric that's not what I'm—"

"Stop it, Juliet. You know, I honestly thought we could work this out and be friends. I know you're going through a rough time right now, but it doesn't make sense for you to try and ruin this for me. All I've ever done is care about you and support you in _all_ of your decisions. The least you could do is support me."

I felt my eyes start to water as Cedric's words cut into me. I couldn't believe that's what he thought…he thought I was trying to _hurt_ him. Hurting him was the last thing I wanted to do.

"Cedric," I said between sobs. "Please…please just listen to me. I'm not trying to screw with you…"

Cedric's features softened a little, and the look in his eyes was sadness. I wasn't sure of the exact reasoning behind the looks he gave me then, but I did know that I wasn't going to be able to convince him. He didn't believe me, and I couldn't blame him for going against me after all that we had been through. He had been too good for me, and even though I had tried to spare his feelings and be open and honest about my emotions, I had still hurt him more than he deserved.

"Go get your seat," he said softly. "We can talk about whatever's going on with you later. Promise."

He gave me a tight hug then, and I was unable to say anything more. I knew I had to let him go. There was no way I could force him to stay there with me.

I watched him leave with a horrible sinking feeling in my stomach. I felt inexplicably as if I had made the worst mistake of my entire life…and yet, I couldn't understand why it was I needed him to stay. It was illogical and unmistakeably idiotic for me to get so worked up over what was essentially a _game_…and yet I couldn't shake the awful feeling of looming disaster.

Fred and George were waiting for me in the stands, saving a spot for the three of us. I didn't feel in the slightest like sitting around…I felt restless and downright terrible. I was fidgety all the way to my seat, and I could feel my heart racing, unable to keep calm and steady.

I was seated right there in the stands (albeit, with extreme difficulty keeping still), squashed in my usual seat between Fred and George, trying to ignore the increasingly sick feeling in my stomach when the task begun. Both of the twins had assured me time and time again everything was going to be fine.

I didn't believe them for a second.

"The Ministry has ensured no one will get seriously hurt this year, Jules," George had said.

"Yeah, they're not going to let anything bad happen to the champions. They brought back the tournament because they knew it was safe again," Fred agreed. He was looking at me with wary eyes. George hadn't seen the meltdown I had had earlier, but Fred seemed very keen on keeping an eye on me in case I was to lose it again. It was a likely possibility.

I knew what they were saying was logical—that Dumbledore wouldn't have allowed it to take place at Hogwarts if it weren't safe—but I couldn't silence the feeling within me that something was terribly wrong.

The task began without me noticing. I was far too distracted trying to decipher the feelings inside of me to notice the cheering of the crowd and the announcements coursing through the air. In fact, I didn't focus on the task at all. I was in my own, torture-filled world as I sat there, and as the task wore on I felt myself growing more and more anxious. It was as if the further the champions travelled into the maze, the worse the feeling got.

I wasn't sure how long it took me to realize I was being stupid, but it was with that sudden realization that it finally clicked in my head. I couldn't just sit there and watch the stupid task. Something needed to be done, and if no one else was going to listen to me, I was just going to have to take care of it myself.

I jumped to my feet.

"This has to stop!" I yelled, and Fred and George tried frantically to pull me back into my seat.

"Juliet, calm down. Everything is fine!" Fred insisted.

They managed to tug me down into my seat, but only because I had developed a quick and highly foolish plan.

As soon as I was down in my seat I allowed myself to fall onto the ground beneath us. I was positive no one in the stands was paying any attention to me—aside from the twins—as I transformed into my cat self and took off through the legs of the audience.

I could hear Fred and George swearing and frantically attempting to chase after me, but I knew they wouldn't catch up. It was much more difficult for two grown young men to push their way through a crowd than it was for a cat.

I had reached the edge of the hedge maze in mere moments without raising any suspicion…although I was certain the twins were doing their best to alert Professor McGonagall. I knew I didn't have much time. I could feel the terror building inside of me like a time-bomb.

I had found a hole large enough for me to wriggle through almost immediately, and pushed my way into the maze.

Immediately I was surrounded by darkness. It wasn't difficult to see as a cat, but I was certain it would be much harder if I were to change back into myself.

I was suddenly very aware of how stupid I was being…not because there was nothing wrong—because I was positive there _was_—but because I had no idea where I was going. I had run into the maze blindly—not even starting from the beginning—and I had absolutely no clue as to where the champions were headed anyway.

I listened silently for any hint or clue as to where the champions may be. I needed to stop all of them from getting to the end. I'm not sure how or why I felt that way, but something inside me just _knew_.

I stared at the ground around me and spotted several footprints headed to my left. Knowing I didn't have much time to waste, I took off in the direction the prints pointed and prayed it would lead me in the right direction. The maze was beginning to terrify me, but I tried not to let it get to my head. I had to focus.

There were terrible beasts planted everywhere in the maze, amongst an uncountable number of twists and turns. Most of the horrible monsters didn't take any notice of me, but surely they would have eaten me alive had I looked human to them.

It was just as I was passing by a large troll that I heard a noise from the crowd outside. I looked up—unsure of where else I could look—and saw red sparks coming from somewhere ahead and to the right of where I was standing. That meant someone was dropping out of the competition.

Good. I hoped it was Cedric.

I jolted forward again, trying to follow in the direction of the red sparks. I guess that was stupid on my part, because if someone was calling for help that meant they were in trouble with some sort of monster. It wasn't the ones dropping out I needed to worry about. They'd be safe once they made it out of the maze. It was the ones who were trying to go to the end that I needed to get to. Those people would need to be stopped before it was too late.

It was Fleur who had dropped out of the competition. I passed her moments after I had seen the sparks. I didn't linger, because I knew it would only be a matter of seconds before someone came to drag her out. The scary thing was, she looked nearly dead. There was no doubt in my mind that Fleur didn't send those sparks up herself.

I looked back down at the ground, spotting more footprints. Without wasting another second I hurried forward in search of Cedric, Harry, and Krum. I only hoped I would make it.

-------

_Fred Weasley_

Juliet had gone mad.

George and I couldn't catch her as we ran through the stands, tripping over the feet of the students surrounding us. Damn, that girl was fast…even faster when she wasn't human-shaped.

George knew before I did what we had to do…I hadn't even managed to fill him in on Juliet's behaviour, so how he knew to go to McGonagall was beyond me. It must have been one of those twin psychic things.

We hurtled ourselves toward the teacher's bench and I nearly landed on top of McGonagall herself as I tripped over Snape's lousy foot…I'm near positive he did it on purpose.

"Professor!"

"Professor McGonagall!"

"Juliet—"

"She's gone!"

"The maze—"

McGonagall's eyes were wide in astonishment as she leapt up to her feet and dragged George and I away from the stands by the ears. I wasn't certain if she had even heard anything we were trying to spout at her, or if she was just alarmed at the high frequency of our voices. It was probably the latter, because once she had pulled us aside she asked us very calmly what we were talking about.

"Juliet's gone," George said, trying to catch his breath.

"She transformed and ran off into the maze," I elaborated. "She was spouting some gibberish about needing to stop the champions before they reached the end—"

"She's gone mad is what's happened," George said. "Took off without an explanation."

"She tried to explain it to me," I said. "I didn't listen. I thought it was just nerves…but she would never run off just because she was _worried_."

Neither George nor McGonagall seemed to be paying me any attention. Professor McGonagall seemed to be creating some sort of game plan in her head and George was staring at the hedge as if willing Juliet to come racing back out.

"Are you absolutely certain she went into the maze?" McGonagall asked, looking back and forth between George and me. She looked sceptical, but I could tell she was at least taking the matter seriously. Above and beyond all else, we were worried more about Juliet getting killed by some monster in the maze rather than the state of her mind at the time.

George and I exchanged uncertain looks. I hadn't seen her run into the maze. I only assumed that's where she had been headed.

McGonagall picked up on our uncertainty and pursed her lips into a firm line.

"Listen to me carefully," she said. "I want you to alert Professor Hagrid to the situation—only Hagrid—he can get to work searching the maze for Miss Christie as he's more capable of seeing over the hedge than any of us. I don't want you to say another word to anyone about this. We mustn't cause a panic."

"But what about Juliet?" George asked.

"What if she gets hurt?" I questioned.

"The creatures within the maze have been instructed to pursue humans, and only humans," McGonagall explained. "As long as Miss Christie remains her feline body she won't be harmed."

"How are we going to get her out without anyone noticing?" George asked frantically, although he seemed much more relieved hearing that nothing was going to attack Juliet. It was safe to say I felt a slight bit better as well.

"Leave that to me," she said. "Now go find Hagrid, and please, be _discreet_."

-------

_Juliet Christie_

I thought my legs were going to give out by the time I spotted them. Harry and Cedric had reached the end of the maze, and were lingering by the glowing Triwizard cup. My heart leapt into my throat at the sight of them alive. I was right there, I could stop them. They'd be safe.

I realized suddenly that I couldn't yell out for them, and I immediately switched back into my human form, feeling my feet pounding down on the ground ferociously. I almost tripped over the roots on the ground, but steadied myself enough to force myself forward toward them.

I could see that they were discussing something then, but I didn't have time to process what exactly they were doing. I needed to reach them.

"CEDRIC!" I wailed, forcing myself to go faster. "HARRY!"

I screamed as loud as I possibly could and pushed myself to go as hard as my body would allow…

And then I suddenly realized that although I was running as hard and as fast as I could…I wasn't moving. I looked down at my feet and was startled to see that I seemed to be running in one spot. I couldn't go forward at all. I began to panic and screamed even louder.

"HARRY! CEDRIC, STOP!" I was crying, terrified by the fact that I couldn't reach them. I knew I had to. If I didn't get to them…

"CEDRIC! CEDRIC, PLEASE! TURN AROUND!"

I almost didn't see it, when they vanished. I stopped crying suddenly and stopped trying to run. They were gone.

I was on my knees in an instant, wailing and sobbing up to the sky.

They were gone.

It was over.

I didn't notice in the slightest as I was pulled from the hedge maze. I wasn't even aware that I seemed to be floating past the obstacles and over the roots beneath me. I was being yanked from the maze. They were pulling me out.

I was sobbing into my hands when I emerged from the darkness. Professor McGonagall was there, ready to expel me for disobeying rules I'm sure, but when she saw the state I was in she must have reconsidered, because her voice was scared and worried.

"Miss Christie, what's happened?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

My head snapped up.

"P-P-Professor!" I squeaked. "Harry and Cedric—they've reached the end—but they're gone!" I spat out, clutching at the bottom of her robes. I was still kneeling on the ground.

"What do you mean, gone?" she asked, leaning over me with a bewildered expression on her face. She thought I was crazy. She wouldn't be the first one.

"It was a Portkey!" I yelped, suddenly realizing what I had seen. "A Portkey! They've taken them!"

"Who's taken them, Juliet?" McGonagall asked me with wide eyes.

I shook my head at her and mouthed wordlessly. I didn't know the answer to that question. All I knew is someone took them and it definitely wasn't a good thing.

"I don't know!" I said. "But they're gone, Professor! Gone! Harry and Cedric…I saw them, they just…vanished!"

McGonagall straightened up immediately, and turned to talk to someone standing directly behind her. I hadn't realized Fred and George had been there the entire time, looking on with grim faces.

"You two! Do not let her out of your sights," she said sternly.

My vision was blurred from the tears when I looked around. I realized I wasn't out in the middle of the field like I had anticipated. McGonagall had pulled me out to a corner of the field, hidden between the stands so I wouldn't be seen or heard.

"Juliet," George said, as the two of them kneeled down in front of me. "What happened?"

I wailed again and buried my head in my hands.

"I couldn't get to them!" I screamed. "I couldn't reach them fast enough! They're gone, George! They're gone!"

"Julie, we don't know what you're saying," Fred said, attempting to be calm. "We don't understand. What happened? Why did you run into the maze?"

I could feel myself beginning to cry harder, almost as if the worst hadn't yet happened. I didn't know why I needed to run in to the maze. I didn't know why I needed to stop Harry and Cedric from reaching the cup. All I knew is that it needed to be done…and I hadn't made it. They reached the cup anyway and disappeared. I didn't even want to think about what that meant.

I couldn't manage to speak again as I convulsed violently with sobs and tears. Fred and George watched me with looks of horror on their faces. They must have thought I'd lost my mind…that my brain was deteriorating right in front of them.

"She's over here, Professor Dumbledore."

McGonagall was back, and the fact that she brought Dumbledore with her was bad news. If Dumbledore was there, that must have meant I was right—something terrible _had_ happened. Of course, I knew it had. I could feel it in my very core. I knew something was terribly wrong, but I didn't _want_ it to be true. I would have rather have been told I truly was insane. It would have been easier to accept.

"Miss Christie," Dumbledore said calmly, "Please sit up and try to speak coherently."

I tried to steady my breathing, and swallowed the panic inside of me.

"Tell me exactly what happened when you made it into the maze," he said hurriedly.

"I-I…I followed the footprints on the ground," I took a deep breath to steady myself, "and found Fleur there…she looked…dead…and I knew someone else had sent the red sparks up…s-so I kept g-going in that direction. I-I-I don't know how long it took, but I found Harry and Cedric. They were at the cup when I saw them."

"What happened next?" Dumbledore asked. His eyes were boring down on me as the others stared silently from behind him. "What happened once they reached the cup?"

"They were talking," I said, "and I changed back into me…tried to scream at them to get back…but they c-couldn't h-hear me! I tried to run, but I wasn't moving, and the next thing I know…they're gone. They vanished, and so did the cup!"

Tears were welling up in my eyes again, but I tried to force myself to remain calm. Something about the fact that Dumbledore was taking me seriously was reassuring. At least he didn't think I was crazy, and if anyone could set things right, it was Dumbledore.

"I couldn't move at all, Professor!" I wailed. "I would have been able to reach them!"

"I'm afraid that's my fault, Professor Dumbledore," McGonagall said. "Once I was alerted to the problem I summoned Miss Christie out of the maze. But certainly, you can't believe that…is she right, Albus?" she had a frightened expression on her face. "Could it have been a Portkey?"

"I hold no doubt that Miss Christie's story is true," Dumbledore said. "Mr. Potter and Mr. Diggory have been transported. To where, I cannot be certain…but to whom…I have a guess."

Professor McGonagall gasped, and I looked back and forth between the two of them frantically, trying to understand. "You can't mean…?" she asked, horrified.

"We must speak to Professor Moody," Dumbledore said urgently, sweeping away with Professor McGonagall tailing him.

I jumped to my feet.

"What is going on?!" I asked, stumbling as I attempted to chase after them.

"Miss Christie, you must sit down," Dumbledore demanded without interrupting his stride. "Stay here. There is nothing more you can do now."

I sped up, demanding that he tell me what was going on, and sensed the twins following close behind me. We were in view of the stands now, and everyone sitting there could plainly see the group of us, heading in a beeline toward Mad-Eye Moody. If I hadn't been so disoriented and scared I would have noticed the curious mumbles rising from the crowd.

"Professor Dumbledore!" I yelled as a sudden eruption of cheers occurred throughout the crowd. I didn't even have the sense to realize what the sudden cheering and celebrating must have meant. "Professor, you must tell me what is going on here!"

It was then, when Fred and George simultaneously grabbed hold of my shoulders and pulled me back toward them, that I realized what I had feared all day had come true.

The stands full of students were no longer emitting joyous cheers of happiness, but screams of utter terror and piercing fear.

Fred and George were yanking on me frantically, then, trying to spare my eyes of what I was about to see…but it was futile. There was nothing they could do to stop me scanning the area for the reason why everyone around me suddenly seemed to be feeling the same horror I had been experiencing since the task had commenced.

"Juliet…" George said, as both of them restrained me. I don't know why they did it…I couldn't find my legs to move anyway.

As I lay my eyes upon Cedric I could feel myself screaming, but I heard no sound coming from my throat. In fact, I couldn't hear anything anymore. It was like someone had blocked out all of my senses in order to intensify the feeling of pure heart-wrenching horror coursing through my veins.

Fred and George's hands were tugging at me, as I seemed to find my strength and was attempting to lunge myself forward toward the spot where Harry was sobbing over Cedric's dead body.

It was like I was in the maze again, unable to move forward, but I couldn't stop pushing myself. I needed to go to him. There was no way…he _couldn't_ possibly be…

Using strength I didn't know even existed in me, I was suddenly hurtling myself toward Harry and Cedric, unaware of the continuous screams and numerous bodies trying to stop me from reaching them. Professor Moody was kneeling there too, trying to wrench Harry away from the body, and I remembered what Dumbledore had said.

'_We must speak to Professor Moody.'_

He had had something to do with this.

I was certain I was screaming and swearing as I reached the small crowd around Cedric's lifeless body. I didn't look down, but instead threw all of my strength behind my fist and sent a painful punch at Mad-Eye's face.

The sound came back to my ears then, as a loud gasp rippled through the people surrounding me. Fred and George were there once more, holding onto my arms. I struggled against them furiously, this time attempting to get at Cedric. I needed to see him, even though I was terrified to look at him that way.

In an instant Moody had dragged Harry away and I had fallen to the ground in a pathetic mess at Fred and George's feet, staring ahead of me at the body of Cedric Diggory.

It was all a rush of screaming and confusion as Professor Dumbledore came to investigate the body himself. He said it out loud, confirming what I already knew to be true.

"He's dead."

I felt my whole world crumble beneath me at those two words. I could have saved him…I could have stopped it from happening…if only I had made it there a moment or two faster.

I crawled on my hands and knees over to where Cedric lay. I wasn't sure what I was intending to do…hold him, touch him, say goodbye…

But as soon as I made it there, I changed my mind. My hand stopped, lingering above his face and I fell backwards, away from him.

I couldn't see him like that. I couldn't bear to look at his cold, empty eyes. I didn't want to remember him as a lifeless figure. Cedric Diggory wasn't there. His body was empty, just like his eyes, and there was nothing there for me now.

I struggled to get to my feet, and felt Fred and George pull me from the ground, supporting my weight.

"Julie, come on, let's get you out of here."

I could feel the tears streaming down my face again, but I could no longer think. I could barely breathe, and I definitely couldn't walk.

Everything that had been going right in my life had suddenly been torn from me. The pain was incomprehensible, and the desire to curl up and die almost too much to ignore. As I allowed Fred and George to tug me back up to the castle, there wasn't a spot on my body—inside or out—that didn't burn with the pain of losing Cedric Diggory.

My life…and all of the happiness and beauty that had once been a part of it…was lost.

-------

**A/N:** Next chapter will be the last. I do hope to be continuing again with the fifth book. I'll post with the details at the end of the next chapter so you guys can watch out for it.


	24. From the Mouth of Albus Dumbledore

**A/N:** This is one of my favourite chapters I've written so far, because I got to write about Professor Dumbledore. I truly hope I did him justice. I tried to capture the essence of the wise, kind old wizard as best I could.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize, including certain plot lines, characters, and settings, belongs to JK Rowling.

**--- CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR ---**

_From the Mouth of Albus Dumbledore_

_Fred Weasley_

The last of the school year was hellish for the entire student body. The incredible shock surrounding Cedric's sudden death and Harry's claim about the return of You-Know-Who had everyone in a panicked state of terror.

Everyone was mourning the loss of Cedric, and even more were questioning the legitimacy of Harry's claim. It was bloody ridiculous if you ask me. How anyone could possibly believe Harry would make up some far-fetched tale about You-Know-Who and Death Eaters was beyond me.

But it happened nonetheless, and rumours began spreading like wildfire around the castle. They involved Harry conducting a few misdeeds ending with Cedric's untimely death, for the most part. Some students, however, began to speculate about Juliet's possible involvement of the tragedy. They viewed her sudden and bizarre break-up with Cedric as suspicious seeing as he had died so soon after they had ended their relationship.

With all the chaos surrounding the event it was quite obvious that there was absolutely no one in the entire castle who was more greatly affected than Juliet.

How she made it through those last days of school I don't think I'll ever know.

She didn't speak to anyone during the week that passed immediately after Cedric's death. She wouldn't voluntarily eat or drink anything either and she never responded whenever anyone tried to speak to her.

Most students kept their distance from Juliet. No one tried to converse with her much. Katie, Alicia, and Lee seemed to sense that nothing they said to her was going to make any of what she was going through easier, thus they backed off, leaving her alone. It was probably for the best. Juliet was so far gone it was a waste of time for anyone to try to get through to her. She was in shock.

George and I, however, were the opposite of everyone else in the school. We kept close to her, refusing to leave her side at all. We nearly had to force feed her during dinners, and walked with her everywhere she went. She never objected, allowing us to take care of her, but she never spoke to either of us either. That didn't matter, though…not at first at least. The most important thing to us was keeping her safe from all of the rumours and harsh comments. Juliet didn't need to hear the stories people were coming up with. They would have made things worse for her, and I wasn't going to let that happen.

At night she would crawl into bed with George, sobbing into his t-shirt until she cried herself to sleep. Neither George nor I slept at all during that time, but we never once complained or said anything…although it made my heart ache to know that she turned to George rather than me at night.

I knew why of course—why she wouldn't come to me. She was feeling guilty and depressed about what had happened between the two of us. She felt awful about leaving Cedric, even though she knew it was the right thing to do. I reckoned she was just angry with herself for filling his last weeks on earth with sadness. In good time I knew George and I would step up to yank her out of her self-pity, but we both knew it was a process she needed to go through.

I didn't blame her for not turning to me, of course. Frankly I wasn't overly surprised. Even though they weren't together when he was killed, Juliet didn't feel exactly right turning to me to mourn Cedric's loss. I actually felt pretty lousy about it myself. I knew I had never really liked Cedric, but I also knew he wasn't a _bad_ guy. He took care of Juliet. He loved her. He was always good to her. I felt like a downright jackass for what had happened between Juliet and me. I knew she didn't regret it, and that her leaving him was for the best, but it wasn't how I wanted it to be between the two of us…and it certainly wasn't how I wanted things to be between Cedric and me either. I was man enough to admit that I had been the one at fault. Cedric had never once done anything wrong. He had never once done anything to hurt Juliet. I couldn't say the same, and I knew that.

It was downright unfair that a person so genuinely _good_ as Cedric Diggory could have his life taken from him. I felt terrible…and the pain I saw in Juliet was nearly too much to bear. I shouldered it anyway, knowing I had to be there for her…even if she didn't want to turn to me; I wanted her to know she could. And part of me believed that somehow, it was helping her to know that even though she wouldn't turn to me—_couldn't _turn to me—I was still there, looking after her like I should have been her whole life.

Juliet had hit a hard time in her life, and I knew although she was a strong person, that she was going to have a difficult time getting through it on her own.

George and I were going to make sure she didn't have to.

-------

_Juliet Christie_

It all passed in a blur. I can't remember any details at all of what happened. There had been a memorial service for Cedric…and Dumbledore had made a speech…

The only thing I know for sure about those last few days of sixth year is that I cried—a lot.

I cried more in one week than I had ever cried in my entire life put together. The shock of losing Cedric had devastated me.

I didn't speak to anyone during that time period…and no one tried to talk to me. Alicia and Katie kept their distance…whether on the advice of Fred and George, or their own conscience, I don't know. It wasn't just them though; almost no one tried to speak to me during the last days of school.

Fred and George stayed close. They never once left my side. At night I would crawl into bed with George and sob into his shoulder until I passed out. He never complained, and neither did anyone else. Whenever either he or Fred tried to talk to me, whenever they asked how I was feeling or tried to persuade me to eat something, I wouldn't respond. I allowed them to take care of me, but never once did I speak a word to them during that time.

They didn't try to force themselves on me, either. They never once urged me to speak to them. They knew I needed some time to mourn. I was devastated. I needed Fred and George to lean on. I needed them, and I was thankful that they understood enough about how I was feeling to let me be. They were angels during those last few days…and continued to be for the rest of my life.

Although my vocal cords didn't get much use during the days that passed, I did talk in my sleep. I tossed and turned during the night, sweating bullets and making George highly uncomfortable I'm sure. Looking back I feel sorry for how much pain I put him and Fred through. I know they hated seeing me like that. Seeing me in that much pain was probably almost as excruciating as feeling the pain first-hand, and I knew they had a difficult time dealing with it.

There were rumours sweeping through the building after what had happened with Harry and Cedric. Dumbledore had told us all about what had occurred—about You-Know-Who murdering Cedric—but not everyone believed what they were told. Harry was becoming known as a head-case, and those who had seen me punch Mad-Eye Moody had jumped to the conclusion that I was somehow involved as well.

Elaborate lies started to surface. Fred and George tried to keep them from getting to me, but the two of them couldn't be everywhere at once (as much as they tried to be). I would get Cedric's friends—Vince, and Rachel, even Codie on occasion—looking at me like I was the one who killed him. People began to piece together more and more lies…suddenly I had murdered Cedric and was using Harry to cover it up, making him claim You-Know-Who was back just to keep from getting caught.

It was utterly ridiculous, of course, and I had enough sense left in me to know I shouldn't let it get to me. Unfortunately, stuff like that always manages to worm its way in and make you feel worse when you're already down.

I spent days wallowing in despair. The worst was the fact that I knew it was upsetting Fred and George. I didn't much care what I was doing to myself by fixating on Cedric's death. Of course, no one expected me to get over it in one fell swoop. The wound was still fresh, but even so, I knew it was doing damage to me and my friends that I made it through entire days without speaking to anyone.

The day I managed to break free of my inner pit of despair was the day before the students were due to be sent home for the summer. It was a surprising event, and was brought on by the most unexpected of individuals…

Albus Dumbledore.

I had managed to sneak away from Fred and George for a few moments, trying to get some time alone. I knew their intentions were good, and for the most part I did truly appreciate having them around. But at times, I desperately needed to be alone.

It was during my moments of peace wandering down a deserted corridor that I ran into Professor Dumbledore. I hadn't realized I had strayed through several hanging tapestries to find myself at his office. I was certain I had been taking the staircases leading toward the opposite side of the castle…Perhaps the stairs had sensed I needed a bit of an intervention and had taken it upon themselves to deliver me to someone who could help. If that's the case I suppose I should be eternally grateful to them.

"Miss Christie," Professor Dumbledore said with mild surprise. "I was under the impression classes were in session."

It was true. Even though exams were officially over, each of the houses had to attend a final class with their head of house. Professor McGonagall was currently going over a recap of everything we learned during the school year, as well as cracking down on us about what to expect for the next. The next year would be our last, so there was a lot of pestering to listen to. Fortunately, I had managed a stealthy escape. The only time I ever managed to get away from Fred and George is when I wandered off to use the girls' lavatory. They would usually tag along and wait by the door anyway, but this time McGonagall refused to allow them to do it.

I swallowed nervously and cleared my throat. I was saved from explaining myself, however, as Dumbledore spoke first.

"I would think Professor McGonagall might object to you skipping her lecture," he said. His smile told me I wasn't in trouble. I was thankful. "But…as you don't appear to be causing mischief, I don't feel obligated to inform her."

I let my lips curl into a small smile. It was forced and uncomfortable, and felt unnatural on my face. I stood pondering the situation for a moment before something in my mind pushed the words out of my mouth.

"Professor Dumbledore," I said tentatively. It wasn't often that I had any one-on-one time with the headmaster. Any conversations we did have were few and far between. "Do you have a minute?"

I knew I had a few questions on my mind, but up until that point I hadn't had a clue about who could answer them for me. It was suddenly very clear to me that the wizard most suitable for handing out any sort of advice was standing directly in front of me.

He smiled at me with a curious look twinkling in his eyes.

"Well, I do believe I can do better than that," he said and he pulled a stopwatch out from his cloak pocket, giving it a quick glance before re-pocketing it. "Yes, it seems I have _two_ minutes I can spare for you, Miss Christie."

He beckoned me up a small staircase and into his office, and I hurried in a bit nervously. I had never seen the inside of Professor Dumbledore's office before. Not many students ever visited his private space, aside from Harry Potter, of course. Even Fred, George, and myself as three of the biggest trouble-makers in the entire school hadn't been inside before.

I tried to look around, wanting to take in everything from the desk to the countless bookshelves and hundreds of portraits of past headmasters and mistresses, but I was far too distracted by my own thoughts and questions. My head was suddenly swimming with things I wanted answered, and I was anxious to have the mysteries solved.

"What was it you would like to speak to me about?" Professor Dumbledore asked, gesturing for me to take a seat in front of his desk. He sat down in his superior-looking armchair and looked at me with a friendly, yet penetrating, glance.

I cleared my throat, and decided not to waste any time. If he had been serious earlier, I only had a couple of minutes to converse with him.

"The day of the third task…when Cedric was killed…" I started, feeling less and less courageous once I was seated in front of the Headmaster himself. It was kind of intimidating. "I…experienced something bizarre."

I wasn't sure how I was going to explain myself, but with one nod of Dumbledore's head for encouragement, I tried my best to make him understand.

"I somehow _knew_ something awful was going to happen that day, Professor," I said. "I felt as though…it's hard to explain…but I got this incredible feeling that something was about to go terribly wrong. I just…I just…_knew_."

I was suddenly very angry with myself for going to Dumbledore with my problems. He probably thought I sounded like a great buffoon. I couldn't even explain to him what had happened. I felt certain he was going to kick me out of his office for wasting his time.

"Mmm, yes," Dumbledore said, and I looked up at him in surprise. "Such a thing is not entirely uncommon," he muttered.

I looked at him with confusion written all over my face.

"In wizards, you mean?" I questioned.

"Well, I suppose it's not entirely unusual amongst wizard-folk either, but it is not a magic-related force…not in the technical sense of the word, anyway."

I shot him a confused look. "If it wasn't magic, then what was it?" I questioned.

Dumbledore gave me a small smile. "It is not uncommon for a bond to become so strong between two people that we become exceptionally in-tune to each other."

Clearly he must have noticed that I was still looking uncertain, so he elaborated.

"I believe what you are describing occurred because of the bond you and Mr. Diggory shared. It is entirely human to be connected to people in ways that defy the laws of normal communication. I believe what you experienced was simply that—an extraordinary demonstration of how greatly influenced we are by the people surrounding us, and how tightly connected our lives are to one another."

"So…you're saying…Cedric and I were joined by a paranormal bond?" I asked. My voice sounded uncertain.

He smiled.

"I once awoke in the middle of the night with a desire so strong for a morsel of fig-pie that I had to travel down to the kitchens for a late-night snack. What was most odd was the fact that I, ever since an unfortunate incident in which I slipped on a slice of the pie, cannot stand the taste of it."

I watched him curiously. I had always known Dumbledore was a bit obscure, but I was never aware of just how cryptic he could be.

"It was on my way down to the kitchens that I came across Professor McGonagall, stumbling through the darkness on her way to find a slice of the same horrid pie I was so suddenly yearning for," he continued, staring at me with meaning.

I couldn't help but smile a little at the professor's odd tale.

"I've blamed her ever since for keeping me awake on a night when I should have been lost to the land of dreams," he said.

"So…Professor McGonagall's craving was so strong that even _you _felt it…" I said. "You think what happened to me was the same sort of thing?"

"Precisely," he said. "It is a rare and wonderful gift to have a bond so strong between two people that you can sense each other's emotions…even rarer when you are able to sense a threat upon a life. I believe your experience on that day was one directly related to the relationship you had formed with Mr. Diggory…and that, Miss Christie, is magic in its own right."

I was silent for a long time, letting Dumbledore's words sink in. I was a bit overwhelmed by what he was telling me, but it seemed logical…or as logical as such an occurrence could ever be. It certainly made more sense than believing I could predict the future, or some such nonsense.

"Is there something else, Miss Christie?"

I cleared my throat, deciding it was best to get all of my concerns out into the open while I had the chance. I was certain Dumbledore would know better than anyone what I should do…he really was the most brilliant person I knew.

"Professor…I'm not sure how to go on from here…after everything that's happened…I can't help but feel…frightened," I said.

I was a bit surprised at myself, despite my newfound confidence. I hadn't been capable of speaking to anyone about how I had been feeling since Cedric's death, and suddenly I was able to pour my emotions out for my headmaster to see? It was a bewildering feeling, but I was somehow certain that my conversation with Dumbledore would be a turning point for me.

Professor Dumbledore studied me for a moment. It was a frightening look he gave me then, as if he could read my thoughts. I felt like he was delving into my brain somehow. It was unnerving, and also astounding.

"When I was a small boy I lived in the tiniest of cottages, tucked away in a space between two great forests," he began again, and I focused all of my attention on what he was saying. If he was going to tell another story, I wanted to be sure to catch every word in case I needed to decipher clues later on.

"I often sat by my window, staring out at the land, fascinated by the great trees and the wilderness surrounding me," he continued. "On one night I saw something strange. A great white beast seemed to glide across the ground beneath my window, and into the forest on the north side of my home…I was amazed and frightened by the beast, but I was a curious boy. I frequently stared out of my window, hoping to catch a glimpse of the mysterious white creature that flitted back and forth across the yard so late at night, but I was always too afraid to go down for a closer look."

Dumbledore paused, looking up at the ceiling as if trying to recall the rest of his memory. I listened intently.

"I remember on one particularly dark night, I decided to get up and investigate," he told me. "I tip-toed out of my room and through my back door until I reached the edge of the forest. I remember lingering there, positively terrified by what I might find…but that didn't stop me. I ran—straight into the darkness—and what I saw there, illuminated by the moon, was a mother unicorn nursing its newborn calf." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled with the memory. "It was the purest and most marvellous display of love I have ever witnessed in all of my days."

He smiled at me, as if he had just bestowed a magical gem of wisdom on me, and I stared back blankly. I tried to show some sign of understanding, but I was confused. I stayed silent for a few moments. I had absolutely no idea what his story had to do with me, and I mulled over it in silence, trying to make some sense of what he told me. I thought about asking him what that was supposed to mean, but I settled on my next concern first.

"Professor…I can't help feeling…feeling like if I had gotten there only moments earlier…that I would have been able to stop this all from happening," I said quietly. "Cedric would still be alive, and Harry would never have reached—"

Dumbledore held up his hand to stop me.

"The world works in peculiar ways, Juliet," he said with that all-too-familiar wise-wizard twinkle in his eye. "Sometimes, despite all of our best intentions…things don't always work out according to plan," he said quietly.

I felt myself leaning in unconsciously to hear him better.

"And it is during times such as those that we must learn to move past our fears. It is during those times that it is in our best interest to run into the darkness head-first," he smiled as he saw my eyes light up in understanding, and continued. "For it is only when we take risks that we can truly experience what life is really about."

I sat across from him for another moment, feeling both awe-struck and slightly flustered. It seemed I had been right to go to him after all. Dumbledore had given me the key to reawakening myself and putting my life back in order.

"Well," Dumbledore said, clapping his hands together, "I do believe that was considerably longer than the promised two minutes of my time," he said with a smile. "If there are no more questions—?"

I shook my head. "No, that's all," I said, rising from my seat. "Thank you, Professor."

"Not at all, Miss Christie," he said kindly, getting up from his own seat.

Dumbledore showed me back out of his office, giving me a curt nod as I left. I returned it, feeling the first genuine smile I'd experienced in days creep onto my face.

-------

I wasn't sure what part of Dumbledore's conversation had finally managed to stir from my inner depression and make me face reality, but I left his office knowing that crying over Cedric's death wasn't going to do me—or anyone else—any good. I had taken my time…allowed myself to feel the grief of losing a person who had grown so close to me over the months I spent getting to know him, and it was time then to move on from it. I was strong enough to know that I could.

I made my way back to the common room, suddenly seeing very clearly that attention was fully on me as I passed students in the hall. I had buried myself so far in my hurt that I hadn't much noticed how people seemed to pay attention to my every move. It was startling, to say the least, but I ignored it. There was no sense in dwelling on the past. I knew there were far more important things I needed to focus my attention on.

Fred and George were waiting for me when I climbed through the portrait hole door, and I didn't miss the looks of confusion and bewilderment when they turned to look at me. They could tell right away that something had changed. I didn't intend to go into the details with them, but I did want them to know I was going to be alright.

"Juliet!" Fred said, his voice dripping relief. "Class ended ages ago."

"Where have you been?" George questioned anxiously.

"Do you two have a minute?" I asked, ignoring their concern. I didn't intend to tell them that I had been with the headmaster.

George's eyes widened so much I thought they were going to pop out of his head. I hadn't spoken to either of the twins in days. They had probably forgotten what my voice sounded like. From the looks of it, neither of them had expected me to respond to their comments, either.

They both stared at me as I lay my hands to rest on the back of the squashy armchair that George was seated in. He was craning his neck to look up at me, and Fred was staring from his spot opposite his brother.

"I'll take that as a yes," I said, clearing my throat. I didn't look at either of them as I spoke, but instead stared into the fire. "I just wanted to say…thank you—both of you—for all that you've done for me lately," I said calmly. "It means a lot, and I just want you to know that I'm…I'm going to be okay."

Neither of them seemed to know at all what they were supposed to say…frankly, my speech was an impromptu thing. I hadn't really intended to come bursting back into the common room to formally thank them for their contribution to keeping me sane. It had just sort of happened.

"I know that the two of you have had a hard time seeing me like I was, and I'm sorry that you had to—"

"Juliet…what are you doing?" George asked suddenly, his face full of confusion.

I looked up at the ceiling.

"I just wanted to apologize for what I put you through—"

"Julie, you don't have to explain to us," Fred spoke up, eyeing me with the same concern and confusion as his brother. "There's no need—"

"Yes there is a need, Fred," I interrupted, staring at him pointedly. He closed his mouth shut firmly, allowing me to continue on. "There is." I repeated. I cleared my throat again, needing to continue. "I want you both to know how much you mean to me. With Cedric gone…and You-Know-Who back…it's taught me something," I said. "I know now that there are people in my life I can't afford to lose… and I'm done wallowing in my own guilt about Cedric, because I don't want to waste away my time being sad over something I couldn't control."

I paused to look at them both and was surprised to see George smirking.

"Are you done pussyfooting around now, Jules?" he asked.

I sent him a questioning look. "What?"

"We get it," he said, looking at Fred and then back at me.

"We know," Fred agreed.

"And we love you too," George said.

I let out a small laugh and felt my insides warm a little at his words. Fred nodded in agreement with his brother, and both of them stared up at me with serious looks on their faces. It was a little fascinating to see, even under such circumstances. Hardly ever did I have an encounter with the Weasley twins while they were both sombre.

I nodded my head, happy that he had stopped my rant, as I seemed incapable of forming the proper words to say.

"Okay," I said, sighing and straightening myself back up. "Good. That's all I wanted to say."

They both stared at me expectantly. They looked uncertain what to expect…as though they thought perhaps I'd turn back into depressed Juliet now that my monologue was wrapped-up.

Neither of the twins said anything for a long time, and I didn't really need them to.

I ran my hands idly through George's messy red hair and gave him a one-armed hug over the back of his seat. He smirked, but didn't move. I had a feeling he was afraid to jinx the situation and send me back into the depression I had left only a short half-hour ago.

Fred watched me with curious eyes as I made my way over to him. He was quiet as I sat myself on the chair next to him, although his arm went carefully around my shoulders. He kissed the top of my head and I felt myself smile again, comforted by his warmth, and the knowledge that despite everything…despite all the horrors that had occurred…some things would never change.

"It's nearly supper," George pointed out. I didn't miss the smile he wore on his face as he watched me tuck my head under Fred's chin.

I made a face.

"I don't reckon I need to attend the end of the year feast this time," I said, feeling my heart sink a little. It was our last night in the castle before summer took over, and although I was keen on refocusing my energy and pulling myself out of my hurt, I knew I wasn't ready to face the world. Even Alicia and Katie…I just didn't feel up to conversation. I definitely didn't feel up to facing the questions that would surely follow.

"I'll stay back with you," Fred offered.

George shook his head, putting his hands up in protest.

"No, I've got a better idea," he said.

Fred and I looked at him with questioning eyes.

"You two stay put. I'll be back in a jiff. We'll eat dinner just the three of us," he said.

George was set on the arrangements, and bounded out of the room before either of us could say anything else. I watched him go, letting a small smile play at my lips. I sighed.

"You alright?" Fred asked, smoothing my hair back from my face.

"No," I admitted, snuggling myself into him even further, "but I will be."

"Well…" Fred said, sounding a little awkward, "I'm here if you need me."

I patted my hand on his knee.

"Don't be silly," I said. "I'll always need you, Fred."

"Listen, Julie," Fred said after a moment of tense silence, "I'm really sorry about Cedric…I know how much you cared about him…and I'm sorry I didn't listen to you…that day during the task—"

"Let's not talk about it," I said quickly. Cedric's death was something I knew I was going to have to come to terms with, but I wasn't comfortable talking or thinking about what I had gone through that day. Even after my talk with Dumbledore…the memory of watching him vanish…it was too much.

"I'm just sorry I didn't believe you," he said.

I nodded. "Don't worry about it, Fred," I said, feeling my mood start to darken. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat next to him. "It wasn't your fault."

Fred pulled back from me a little bit, taking my fidgeting as a sign that I needed some space.

"It wasn't your fault either," he said.

I looked up at him, studying the look of worry in his eyes. It made my heart ache to see him so upset over my pain.

I forced a smile.

"I missed you," I said, wanting to brighten the atmosphere in the room. I had spent a week straight being miserable, and I was keen on having at least one good night with the twins to show them everything was going to be alright.

"I missed you too," he said with a small smile. "Just promise me…even though I know there will be times when you need to be sad…just don't…_leave_ like that again."

I smiled genuinely.

"Did Freddy miss talking to me?" I teased, surprising myself at how easily it came to me.

He smirked.

"Maybe a little."

There was a crash from across the room that made me jump, and we both turned to look at the portrait door.

George was back, levitating several tray of food in front of him as he kicked his way through the door and into the common room.

"You have no idea how difficult it was to get by McGonagall with all of this," he said shoving aside one of the chairs with his foot to make room.

I moved off of Fred and pulled three cushions out onto the floor. Fred sat down next to me, and George flopped down on my other side, letting the trays fall down with a small crash. I winced and watched the glasses of pumpkin juice teeter before settling back down.

"You'd think there were eight of us," I commented as George pulled me into a headlock and placed a kiss on the top of my head.

"It's our last day as sixth years," he said with a shrug.

George handed me a glass of pumpkin juice, gripping his own in his hand. He gave Fred a meaningful look.

Fred took the last of the three glasses and lifted it up.

"Toast…to Cedric Diggory," he said simply.

"For his exceptional Quidditch skills," George said, raising his own glass.

"His impeccable good looks," Fred said with a smirk.

"And the kindness he gave to everyone," George continued.

I lifted my own glass, and the twins looked to me expectantly. I stared at the table in front of me, wondering what on earth I could say to do Cedric Diggory justice. I shook my head. Fred and George had it covered. Cedric Diggory was just that…he was _Cedric Diggory_. There wasn't anything I could say that could describe him any better than that.

"May we never forget him," I said.

Fred and George smiled at me, and we all drank.

Drank to honour, purity, goodness, and heroism.

We drank to Cedric Diggory.

-------

The hours slipped away as the three of us stayed in the corner of the common room. People came in from the feast, giving us curious looks, but no one lingered long. They were off to bed in order to rise early for the train ride home.

Katie and Lee came back together, and the two of them stopped in their tracks at the sight of us.

I locked eyes with Katie and she gave me a small smile. Lee grinned broadly at me.

I gave them a nod, allowing my own smile to brighten my features.

That only made them grin even wider as they each headed up to their prospective dormitories.

George stretched next to me, letting out a great yawn.

"I reckon it's time for bed," he said, leaning over to ruffle my hair affectionately before standing up. "You two coming?"

"Oh," I said suddenly, stopping him as he turned toward the stairs, "I think I'll be sleeping in my own bed tonight," I said. George opened his mouth to say something cheeky, so I interrupted him. "Yours smells funny."

He rolled his eyes at me.

"Alright then," he said. "Catch you in the morning, love."

"G'night, George."

I listened as George took the stairs two at a time, and laughed when I heard him crash into Lee, who had apparently been standing at the top of the stairs to eavesdrop on us. Fred rolled his eyes, but couldn't contain his laughter either.

It wasn't until we heard the distinctive click of the dormitory door snapping shut that Fred spoke again.

"So," he said, leaning back on his hands as he spoke, "what brought on your change of heart?"

I ran a hand through my hair thoughtfully. I should have known he'd want to pick my brain. A Weasley twin is never satisfied. They always need to know _more_.

"What do you mean?" I asked, resting my chin on my hand as I sat cross-legged across from him.

"Tonight," he said. "The apologies…the…well, you know…_this_," he said.

I smirked.

"You mean, why have I suddenly decided not to be miserable for the rest of my life?" I asked.

Fred made a face.

"If you want to put it that way."

I shook my head in amusement, and looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully.

"Someone…helped me realize that…despite our best intentions, things don't always go the way we hope," I said, "and we never know how much time we're going to get." I shrugged. "I decided life's too short to dwell on the past…and sometimes, even though it's scary, you've just got to…to run into the darkness head-first."

I smiled to myself, completely unaware of the entirely confused look Fred was shooting me.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he asked, sounding utterly bewildered.

I shook my head, the smile still firmly in place as I rose from my seat to head up to my dormitory.

"I think I am ready for bed. Goodnight, Fred," I said, stopping momentarily to place a kiss on his cheek before continuing on my way. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Seriously, Juliet, what on earth were you talking about?" he asked. I didn't bother answering. I kind of liked the idea of keeping my conversation with Dumbledore a secret. It had felt like a very private affair.

I climbed up the stairs and was halfway up when I heard him call up to me again.

"You know, no one likes it when you're being cryptic!"

I smiled to myself, holding back a laugh.

I wasn't sure how on earth I was going to be able to push past the horrors of my sixth year at Hogwarts, and it was impossible to know what kind of terrifying things were waiting in the shadows for the rapidly approaching summer…

But one thing _was_ certain. Through all of the pain and suffering, including the sudden loss of Cedric, and the return of the dreaded You-Know-Who, one thing had become perfectly clear:

Something huge was on the brink of arrival, and none of us would be able to turn back once it began.

-------

**A/N:** I hope you all enjoyed this story! I think the wise words of Dumbledore were a good way to end this portion of the story, as he hints at many adventures yet to come. I hope you all take his advice, and aren't afraid to run-head first into the darkness in your lives. Thank you all for all of the support you gave me. Please leave a review and help me end _And the Plot Thickens_ on a positive note!

I ask that you please, _please_ leave me a review and help bring this story to a proper close.

And then, AFTER you've finished leaving me your kind words, head on over to my profile and click on Part III (_Reckless Abandon_) where you'll be able to read the prologue to the next part of this story.


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